Inconceivable
by Jediempress
Summary: Today, I took a pregnancy test. It came out positive. I'm a guy. WARNING: Male pregnancy. Hopefully a different twist on the concept. CloudRiku. Set in my universe /kind of/ but easy enough to follow on its own!
1. Chapter 1

In case you missed; THIS IS A MALE PREGNANCY story!!!!!!!!!!!

The damn plot bunny wouldn't go away and let me do the stories I want so I'm getting this out of my head. I don't even like m-preg. Please do not bother giving me a hard time; if you don't like it you don't have to read. Polite critizism is okay.

Reviews and feedback will decide if I continue this story here.

I don't own KH, FFVII or anything else in the Nomura collection... but the crack-pot story is mine.

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Inconceivable

"Cloud?" Riku's voice drifted through the wood of the bathroom door. "Do you need anything?"

Cloud Strife opened his mouth to reply and promptly began vomiting again. This had been the pattern for over a week now. For eight days, he had been throwing up almost randomly throughout the day. It was worse in the morning but at any given time, he would get that _feeling_ and soon after be emptying the contents of his stomach into whatever was most convenient.

He did not really feel sick per say, it was more of a 'not quite right', but even that was extremely abnormal for him. Since getting 'mako-fied' as Zack liked to call it, he was very rarely ill. The only other time he got even remotely nauseous was when his motion-sickness would decide to flare up. He was beginning to think there was something seriously wrong.

Taking a moment to be sure that this latest bout was over, Cloud stood up. Still okay, he flushed the toilet and went to the sink to rinse out his mouth and clean his face. As he dried his face off, he idly noted that it looked a bit swollen in the mirror.

The bathroom door cracked open and Riku leaned in. His aqua eyes were dark with extreme concern. Seeing that his husband was past this morning's episode, he opened the door further and took the few steps to stand beside Cloud. Brushing at a few damp bangs, he smiled weakly. "Better?"

"For now." Cloud murmured. He turned and leaned against Riku, slipping his arms around the younger man's waist and dropping his head on his shoulder. "I hate saying this but if this doesn't stop soon I'm going to have to see the doctor."

Riku nodded in agreement. He had wanted Cloud to go days ago. "Think you can keep some toast down?"

"Yeah." Cloud drew away. "Light food hasn't been too bad."

"All right. Get dressed and I'll make you some."

Cloud followed Riku out of their bathroom. As the younger man left the bedroom, Cloud collected his clothes for the day. After dressing, he headed downstairs and into the kitchen. Riku was just finishing buttering the toast and the tea kettle was about to whistle.

Riku handed him a small plate with the toast on it as he shut off the stove. The blond smiled gratefully as he took the plate from him and went to sit at the table. Suddenly he was ravenous and the food was eaten before Riku finished making the tea.

"Damn." Riku set a mug down before Cloud as he sat. He began adding honey to his own tea as he chuckled lightly. "You must feel better. I've never seen you down food that fast."

Cloud merely shrugged. He wanted a few more pieces but knew better than to push it. The last thing he wanted was for his sensitive stomach to turn on him again. "Do you know where Leon wants me to take that load of office supplies?"

"I think he said it was for the school." Riku took a sip of tea. "You should probably check."

"They should know at the warehouse. I don't feel up to dealing with Leon today."

Riku frowned slightly. "What's going on with the two of you lately? All he seems to do is annoy you but I can't see why. Actually, everyone seems to be doing that."

"I don't know." Cloud shook his head with a sigh. "Lately I've just been kinda…"

"Moody."

"Yeah." The swordsman drank some tea. "I'm dreading the meeting in two days."

Riku chuckled as he set his cup down. "Yuffie made a crack the other day that you were pregnant."

Cloud rolled his eyes. "If one of us was going to end up pregnant it would be you."

"True," agreed Riku with a thoughtful look. "Though given the impossibility of that happening, what's to say it couldn't somehow happen backwards?"

"Exactly how would that work? If I'm the one inside you, how would I get pregnant?"

"I don't know. I still don't get the fascination some people have with male pregnancy in the first place. There are some things in nature that should not be messed with and that's damn near the top of the list."

Cloud snorted his agreement as he stood to put his plate in the sink. As he passed Riku, he squeezed his husband's shoulder. "You ready to go?"

Riku finished his tea and stood up. "Yeah."

--0—0—

"Cloud." Leon spoke his name harshly, snapping him awake.

Silently cursing himself, Cloud focused on the meeting. He had fallen asleep twice now and he did not know why he was suddenly so tired. Yesterday and today he had been almost narcoleptic. At least he had not thrown up today.

Beside him, Zack flicked his eyes over and frowned lightly. His best friend had been doing that a lot these past few days. He had been present for several of Cloud's random bouts of vomiting and had noted this morning that Cloud was rather pale.

Rufus concluded the meeting and everyone was dismissed. As those gathered filed out, Zack turned toward Cloud. "Are you feeling alright?"

"I'm fine," murmured the blond. He was starting to get tired of being asked that.

"You don't look fine." Leon stated as he approached them. "I can't put my finger on it but something's looked off about you for some time now."

"Yeah," Zack seconded. "It was even before you started randomly throwing up. I'm thinking something's seriously up, Spike."

Cloud sighed and rubbed at his forehead. He was surprised to find it rather warm. Upon this realization, he decided that it was getting hot in the room. He needed to get some air.

He quickly stood up and instantly regretted it. The room swirled around him before flipping upside down. His legs gave out beneath him and he faintly heard his name called out…

Then everything went black.

--0—0—

Riku raced into the medical center, followed closely by Sora. The two had been at Sora's apartment having an evening of best friend time when Riku had gotten the call from Leon that Cloud had collapsed. The silver-haired young man skidded to a halt before Leon who was waiting near the information desk. "Where is he?"

"They were drawing more blood from him when they kicked me out." Leon informed Riku as he led him to the exam rooms. Sora remained in the lobby to wait for anyone else who would be arriving. "We figured Zack would be more useful to give them information than I."

"What happened?"

"He went to get up at the end of the meeting and fainted. We were able to revive him immediately after but with everything else that's been going on with him, we felt it best to bring him here." Leon exhaled. "He's not happy with us."

That actually relieved Riku. If Cloud was able to put up a fuss, he couldn't be that bad off. He had been wanting Cloud to see the healers for several days now; to him this was a blessing. Maybe now they would figure out what was wrong and treat it.

Leon led him to one of the rooms. Cloud's voice could be heard from the cracked open door and he was clearly unhappy about where he was. Leon motioned for Riku to go ahead and waited, probably for Zack to come out.

When Riku stepped inside, he actually smiled a bit. His husband was sitting up, propped by pillows, with a scowl on his face. The humor of the scene was only tempered by the iv in his hand and the vital sign monitor he was attached to.

"None of this is necessary." The blond growled.

"I disagree." Zack retorted easily.

"So do I." Riku crossed the small room to stand at his lover's bedside. He reached over and caressed Cloud's cheek with the back of his hand. "Until we know what's wrong this is exactly where you should be."

Cloud huffed and settled against the pillows. "I've probably got some virus that the mako wasn't been able to kill right away."

"And that right there should concern you." Riku frowned. "Or have you forgotten about my little cough a few years ago that nearly killed me?"

No, Cloud had not forgotten that. That had been the single most terrifying week of his life. He had never been as afraid as he had been spending those three days at his husband's bedside, not knowing if he was going to recover.

As Cloud leaned his head back and closed his eyes, Riku sat on the edge of the thin mattress and took his hand. "Just let them run any tests they want and get their samples. If there's nothing obvious right away, I'll push for them to let you go home."

"All right." The older man reluctantly agreed, relaxing as Riku idly ran his fingers through his hair.

"Cloud." Aerith's voice announced her arrival. She came in and smiled softly. "Feeling better?"

"Just really tired."

Zack gave the woman a quick hug before leaning toward his best friend and ex-lover. "I'm gonna duck out of here before Cameron returns and starts yelling about too many of us. Call if you find out anything, got it?"

"Yeah." Cloud embraced him with one arm. "Thanks."

"Thank Leon, not me." Zack chuckled as he pulled away. "I panicked when you went down. He's the one who handled everything."

"We'll let you know what we find out." Riku smiled gratefully at Zack.

"Yep. See ya!" Zack half-waved and walked out.

Aerith wandered over to the vitals recorder and checked Cloud's status on the machine before pressing her hand to his face. "I know you don't want to be asked this again but how are you feeling?"

"Didn't you just ask me that?"

"No, I asked if you felt better." Aerith lightly chastised. "Different question so answer."

Riku couldn't help but chuckle at the look on Cloud's face.

Cloud glowered but answered Aerith. "I'm tired and a little nauseous again but no dizziness."

The healer nodded. "Well, from what Cameron told me, there hasn't been anything notable in the tests results other than your slightly anemic. That could have very easily caused the fainting spell."

"Good." Riku squeezed Cloud's hand. "Think he'll be able to go home tonight?"

"It's a good possibility. There's really no reason to keep him at this point." Aerith grinned and casually placed her hand on Cloud's abdomen and patted it a few times like a parent would a child they just put to bed. "I know how much you hate…"

She paused, her hand against Cloud's belly. Minutely tilting her head, an odd look flitted across her face for a moment. She moved her hand slightly and the look returned.

"Aerith?" Riku said her name with concern.

"Huh." She withdrew her hand and worried her lower lip. Stepping away from the bed, Aerith smiled reassuringly. "I'm going to find you something to eat."

Cloud was actually a bit hungry. That was probably causing the nausea he was experiencing. "That sounds good."

Riku was still suspicious of the woman's peculiar reaction upon touching Cloud's abdomen. Aerith picked up on small changes in people's auras and their general _feel_. It was obvious that she had felt something unusual about Cloud just now.

He wanted to follow her out and ask her about it in the hall but he didn't want to unnecessarily worry Cloud. The man must not have noticed it and it was likely that Riku was overreacting. Aerith had not looked concerned about what she felt; it was more of a curious/confused expression.

Cloud could tell that Riku was thinking about something. He had also seen the odd look that had crossed Aerith's face but he wrote it off to having been sick for several days now; of course he wasn't going to feel like he normally did. They already knew he was anemic, he was likely dehydrated as well.

Aerith left and Cloud squeezed his husband's hand. "Riku."

Aqua eyes fixed upon him.

"I'm going to be fine."

"I know." Riku smiled weakly. "I'm just being a bit paranoid after what happened with me."

Cloud scooted over in the small bed and tugged Riku toward him. The younger man turned himself and half-lay beside him, raising his free arm above his head to toy with Cloud's soft spikes of hair. The blond did not say anything further but he knew that Riku understood that he got why Riku was so concerned.

They lay together comfortably against each other on the narrow mattress. Cloud slowly dozed off and Riku idly continued playing with his hair. He withdrew his hand from his lover's and gently placed it on Cloud's abdomen. He knew he wouldn't feel anything but he lightly ran his fingers along it, pressing just hard enough to feel the muscles beneath the thin t-shirt Cloud wore.

When he got to the left of Cloud's navel, he paused and reran his hand over the spot. There was a slight swelling, only a few inches in diameter and maybe half an inch high. The area felt a little more solid than the skin surrounding it. It was around the same place Aerith had placed her hand earlier.

A soft tap echoed through the door before it opened and Aerith stepped back in. She noticed that Cloud was sleeping and quietly closed the door. In one hand she held a plate with toast and as she approached the couple, she chuckled lightly. "I had a feeling he'd be asleep."

"He drifted off about twenty minutes ago."

Aerith nodded and set the small plate on the bed stand. "Sleep is probably good for him. Hopefully he'll stay that way for awhile because there's talk of giving him some shots."

That would be fun. Cloud despised needles in general and withdrawing blood was always a challenge but he dealt with it and let them. Injections, however, were a very different thing. After what had been done to him in Shinra Manor all those years ago, no one could blame him for his paranoia of anything injected by needle into his body.

Riku cast his eyes down to where his hand still resting on Cloud's abdomen. "Aerith? You felt this, didn't you?"

The Cetra frowned slightly as she also looked to the spot. "I'm not sure what it is. I told Cameron about it."

"You don't think…?" The young man swallowed. "You don't think it's a tumor or something, do you?"

"No." There was certainty in Aerith's voice. "One thing I can say for sure is that Cloud's life is not in danger. In fact, his energy is more vibrant than it's ever been."

That was…strange. With how sick he's been, it made more sense for him to be slightly weakened. "What about his aura?"

The odd look from earlier returned to Aerith's face. "Well, that's what's throwing me right now."

Before Riku could ask for more details, there was another tap on the door and one of Dr. Cameron's associates poked his head in. His expression was thoroughly confused. "Aerith? Can we have a moment?"

"Sure, Chase." Aerith smiled at Riku and brushed the side of his face. "I'll be right back."

A very uneasy feeling settled in Riku's stomach as she hurried out. One thing he had learned a very long time ago was that confused doctors were a bad thing. He took some comfort in that, due to the mako and other substances Hojo had injected Cloud with, it was likely there was merely an issue with identifying one of them. He knew that they had had a hell of a time analyzing his blood and tissues when he was sick.

Cloud stirring a bit and Riku smoothed his hair. He removed his hand from his husband's belly and brushed a long spike of blond hair from Cloud's face. As Cloud slowly woke up, Riku leaned in and kissed the top of his head.

"Mmm…" A faint smile pulled at Cloud's mouth and he snuggled closer to Riku's taller body. "What time is it?"

"No idea. You haven't been asleep for very long though."

"Really?" The older man's eyes opened, still sleepy-looking. "I feel like I slept for hours."

"It's only been about forty minutes." Riku informed him quietly.

Cloud shifted into a more comfortable position and glanced up at Riku. "Aerith come back?"

"Yeah. She brought toast but it's probably nasty now."

"Ick. I don't want any more toast."

"When we get out of here, I'll make you whatever you want." Riku promised. "Or at least anything you're allowed to have."

"I want a sausage biscuit with egg and cheese and hot sauce."

A silver eyebrow lifted. "You don't like hot sauce."

"I know. It just sounds amazing right now… and that sea-salt ice cream stuff."

Riku frowned. "You hate sea-salt ice cream."

"Yeah, well…" Cloud shrugged. "It doesn't sound gross right now."

The door opened and Aerith walked back in followed by Cameron and Chase. The two doctors had put on their professional neutral expressions but the confusion was still obvious in their eyes. The Strife couple tensed up, knowing that they were not likely to be hearing good news. Aerith's green eyes were narrowed in concern as she stepped closer. The doctors hung back and it was clear they were letting Aerith tell the couple whatever information they had.

"What's wrong with me, Aerith?" Cloud asked quietly.

"Well," The woman wrapped one arm around her waist and brought the hand of the other one up to her chin. "I don't know if I'd call it wrong but…"

Riku's voice was as quiet as his husband's. "Just say it, Aer."

She bit her lower lip and looked directly into Cloud's blue eyes. "Um… you're pregnant."

--0—0—


	2. Chapter 2

I'm shocked how well received this has been. Thank you for the support, guys. I'm trying to make this somewhat realistic (at least as much as one of these stories can be). Please keep leaving your feedback!

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"…No, I'm not."

Cloud did not move, did not even bat an eye, at Aerith's words. To him, the statement was completely impossible and not worth a reaction beyond outright dismissal of it. What an absolutely ridiculous notion. If they didn't have anything better than that…

"I'm completely serious, Cloud."

"So am I."

Riku listened to the exchange silently. As soon as the word 'pregnant' was spoken, his brain began listing all the problems with what was being proposed. Men did not, could physically not, get pregnant. It was biologically impossible; the male anatomy did not allow for it not to mention the fact that a very vital part to conception was missing. There was no egg to fertilize and sperm, even two men's mixed together, simply would not cut it. No matter how you looked at it, male pregnancy couldn't happen.

His initial reaction was to tell Aerith the joke was not funny. There had been teasing about the subject for several years now but this was completely inappropriate. This was followed by the thought that Aerith wouldn't joke about something like this. He then began wondering about the credentials of the two doctors standing silently near the far wall.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Cloud asked in irritation. "Men can't get pregnant."

"Normally, no," agreed Aerith. She glanced back at Cameron and Chase. "However…"

Cameron took a shallow breath as this was obviously her cue. "Men and women have the same hormones, just in different amounts. Instead of the normal male levels of LH, FSH, and estrogen, you have what would be normal for a female. Your testosterone is extremely low; in the range that a woman would have.

"And we found hCG, which you shouldn't have at all." Cameron concluded.

Riku had done some research into human biology when he had found out about his creation. He had a solid, basic understanding of human anatomy and physiology and was familiar with the hormones Cameron was talking about. Her last statement struck him hard. "HCG is only present in pregnancy."

"Exactly."

"Personally," Chase spoke for the first time since coming in. He sounded more cautious and less certain that the two women; probably because he was a man and understood just how insane this had to be for the couple. "I don't think you're actually pregnant but for some reason your body thinks it is. Something happened to completely reverse those hormones."

He came over to the bedside and gestured at Cloud's abdomen. When Cloud lifted his shirt, the doctor placed his hand on it, right were the odd, solid swell was. "Aerith notified us of the mass here, which is why they jumped on the pregnancy theory. However, masses can be a lot of things. For us to determine what exactly this is, we'll have to do an ultrasound."

"Do it." Cloud did not hesitate. "I want this ridiculous baby idea gone."

"Cloud…" Riku didn't know why but this wasn't sounding quite so ridiculous to him anymore. Aerith had said that Cloud's life wasn't in danger, that his aura was as strong as it's ever been. The only thing he could think of that would alter hormones that drastically would be a tumor of the glands or some kind of endocrine disease. Neither of those sounded like they fit the symptoms, but a pregnancy… even a false one would explain everything.

Cloud looked at his husband in annoyed disbelief. "What? Don't tell me you're buying into this."

"No, but…" The silver-haired young man worried his lower lip. "There's enough evidence to back the theory."

Cloud sighed. "Whatever. Just do the ultrasound."

Nodding, Chase stopped his physical exam of the abnormality. He left the bedside and he, followed by Cameron, left the room. It was silent in their wake and Aerith studied Cloud for a long moment.

Cloud fixed his attention on the by now stale toast on the bed tray, his expression unreadable. Riku had no idea what he was thinking and was hesitant to ask. The blond probably did not know himself what he was thinking and pushing him would only make him shut down. It would not be until they had their answers that Cloud would be able to process and react.

Riku squeezed Cloud's hand and got off the bed. "Can I talk to you a minute, Aerith?"

"Sure."

He leaned in and kissed Cloud lightly. "I'll be right back, love."

Cloud made a noise in response and watched the younger one walk away. He joined with Aerith and they stepped into the hall. Now alone in the small room, Cloud looked down at his stomach. He ran his fingers over the slight change in the landscape of his abdomen.

Huffing out a breath, he took his hand away and dropped it on the mattress beside him. Turning his gaze to the generic painting on the wall, he shook his head to himself. He could not believe that two highly trained medical professionals were even considering him being pregnant as a possibility. Aerith was clearly convinced it was true and Riku was at least considering the possibility…

What the hell was wrong with everyone?

--0—0—

Riku shut the door behind him and turned toward Aerith. The woman had taken a handful of steps down the hall and was now facing him. "This is an insane idea, Aerith."

"I know." She agreed, wrapping an arm around her waist. "But…I know it's true. When I put my hand on him… I felt it, Riku. There's new life growing inside Cloud."

"It doesn't make sense." The silver-haired man's voice rose slightly with a mix of emotions. "First and foremost, he's a man. Men don't get pregnant. I won't bother listing all of the other problems with this scenario."

"I'm well aware of all of that, so are Cameron and Chase," Aerith spoke calmly. Riku did not find it soothing at all. "They both believe that, at the least, Cloud's body thinks it's pregnant."

"That… I can believe." Riku closed his eyes and rubbed his temple. "There can be a lot of reasons for that."

Aerith angled her head at him. "You think I'm wrong?"

Riku blew out a breath and paced a few steps. "I know you're rarely wrong about these things. I just… I _cannot_ reconcile what I know as biological law with… And even if it were something that was possible, how is it that _he_ got pregnant?" He chuckled dryly. "It's kinda ironic that we talked about this just the other day. If either of us was going to get knocked up, it would be me."

Aerith placed a hand on his arm. "Let's get the absolute confirmation before we start trying to figure out how."

Riku ran his fingers through his hair. Everything about this was wrong. Logically, he knew that this situation as an impossible one but in his heart… He didn't know if he wanted it to be true but something about all of this felt… not exactly right but… he didn't know. There were just so many questions. "If this is real… I don't know what we're going to do."

She squeezed his arm gently. "One step at a time, Riku."

"Yeah." The young man closed his eyes and centered himself. The best thing for everyone would be for this to end up some weird disorder that had suddenly developed. Cloud may have to take meds and hormone treatments for the rest of his life but that was easily handled.

However, if there really was a baby…

"I need to get back to Cloud." Riku straightened up and flicked his bangs. Wiping his expression clean, he re-entered Cloud's room. He knew that his calmness would immediately be seen as an act but he had to at least pretend everything was normal.

Cloud was gazing at the painting on the wall but Riku doubted he was actually seeing it. "You know this whole thing is insane, Riku."

"Yeah," agreed Riku, crossing the room. "But we've both seen and been through so many things that would be considered insane we can't just rule the possibility out."

The blond man sighed. "That's the only reason I'm allowing the ultrasound."

Riku stopped at his husband's bedside. Worrying his lower lip, he cast his aqua eyes toward Cloud's belly. "Cloud… what if-"

"Stop." Cloud cut him off quickly. "I can't even… not until there's proof."

The couple fell silent, each lost in their own thoughts. When Chase, Cameron and Aerith came in a few minutes later, Chase pushing a large cart with a machine on it, the pair barely reacted. The only physical sign of acknowledgement was that Riku took a step close to Cloud and Cloud reached over to take his hand.

A Chase wordlessly began setting up the ultrasound machine, Cameron explained what was about to happen. "I don't know if you've seen this done before but all that's going to happen is we're going to place some gel on your abdomen and use the scanning wand to get a look at what's inside."

"I went to an ultrasound with Tifa," Cloud muttered. "I know the process."

Aerith was frowning deeply at Cloud but remained quiet. Riku had a fairly good idea what was troubling her; it was likely the same thing that was bothering him. Cloud had completely withdrawn since the word 'pregnant' had been spoken.

"I need you to lift your shirt and lay back." Chase ordered, picking up the tube of gel on the cart. Cloud did so, his right hand still holding Riku's. Once he was re-settled, Chase held the tube above Cloud's abdomen near the lowest of his scars. "This is going to be cold."

Cloud winced a touch as a fair amount of clear gel was squeezed onto his stomach. The stuff was cold but that wasn't the main reason for his reaction. He had a vague memory of having a substance similar to this layered on his skin before…. One of the ways mako was introduced to the body was by a gel absorbed through the skin. He probably would have reacted much more strongly if the gel had been anything but clear.

Chase brought the ultrasound wand to Cloud's taut belly, placing it above his navel. From there he slowly brought it toward the twin scars on his right, establishing a normal image for the area. HE then went back around to the left and down to the mass they were investigating. The machine's screen was away from Cloud and Riku's sight and Chase's eyes were fixed upon it as he dragged the wand carefully against skin.

Cameron stood beside him and was also studying the screen intently. Toward the bottom of the abnormality, she pointed at something she saw. Her male counterpart reran the wand over the spot and leaned closer to the screen. Both doctors scrutinized the image, their expressions becoming increasingly shocked.

Breaking professionalism, Chase muttered, "Bloody hell… this is…"

Riku felt his heart clench. "What?"

The doctors' exchanged a quick look before Chase turned the screen toward his patient. He pointed at a tiny circular section of the distorted, brownish-orange image created by the sound-waves reflecting off of the tissues of Cloud's body. "See this? This is an embryonic sac."

Riku was certain he was going to faint. His breath stopped and it was like everything had frozen in time. It wasn't possible. If there was an embryonic sac, that meant…

Chase's finger moved to a tight concentration within the circle. "And this is the embryo."

The room went completely silent.

Cloud stared at where the male doctor pointed. It was a baby; he refused to believe it. It was something else, anything else. A tumor, an abnormal growth, some random internal scar from all the times he had been stabbed though, he'd even take some leftover thing from when he had been an experiment… anything but what Chase said.

"You can't be serious." Riku breathed out, his voice shaky.

"I don't have a clue how but Cloud really is pregnant." Chase managed out, clearly as stunned as everyone else present.

"So what do we have to do?" Aerith asked, recovering from the shock quickly having already accepted the idea from the beginning.

Cameron shook off her own surprise and began listing things. "First we're going to have to determine how far along he is and if the pregnancy is even viable. Then we'll need to figure how to best keep Cloud's body in a condition to sustain the pregnancy and if we're going to have to take any steps to-"

"Who said I was having the thing?" Cloud's voice suddenly broke in. There was no emotion to it and his expression conveyed that same state. His eyes were still set upon the saved image on the screen. "Whatever it is, I don't want it."

"Cloud," Aerith began.

Riku studied his husband for a second before quietly asking, "Could you all give us a minute?"

The pair of doctors nodded. Chase coiled up the scanning wand as Cameron handed over a stack of paper towels so that Cloud could clean up. As they departed with the machine, Cameron told them to let them know when they made a decision.

Aerith lingered a beat longer, clearly unhappy about Cloud's statement. Riku shot her a look and silently asked her to let him handle this. He was in shock, too, but if anyone was going to get Cloud through this, he had the best chance. They were going to need some time to process this without outside influences.

The brunette woman bit her lip but turned and left. When she did, Riku released Cloud's hand and walked around the bed. Cloud was still gazing almost blankly where the ultrasound screen had been.

Riku reached over and brushed the side of his lover's face with his knuckles. "Where are you, love?"

"Some weird parallel dimension." The blond responded flatly. "I've been sucked into an alternate universe where everything is backwards."

"That would explain some things."

"It's that or this is a very large, elaborate practical joke and I'm not laughing."

"That seems more likely."

"Yeah." Cloud remained motionless for a minute further. He then slowly traced his fingers over the sticky area of his abdomen. "It's not, is it?"

Riku shook his head. "No. If Aerith wasn't certain, I'd doubt all of this. My head… I can't even begin to process this but my heart knows it's real."

"How the hell is this possible?" Cloud muttered. Though his tone was calm and his expression still neutral, Riku knew how overwhelmed Cloud truly was. When Cloud was deeply upset, his country accent would creep into his voice. "I can't think of a single way this could happen. Did I get randomly cursed? Is the thing growing inside me even a baby? Maybe it's some kind of parasite that's going to kill everyone."

Riku attempted a weak smile. "You've seen Alien too many times."

"Seen what?"

"Never mind." The silver-haired man sat on the edge of the bed. He picked up one of the paper towels and began wiping up the gel. "Look, there's a ton of questions that are going to have to be answered. Don't make any major decisions until we answer some of them."

Cloud was quiet for a long moment before softly stating, "I don't want this, Riku."

Riku worried his lower lip and continued cleaning his husband up. It bothered him greatly that Cloud was not even considering keeping the baby. They had toyed with adopting kids for a few years and now they had the chance to have a child that was their own… or at least Cloud's-

His hand paused over the place where the embryo inside Cloud was growing. Cloud did have a point; how did they know this was a normal, human baby? This was not a traditional pregnancy in any sense of the term. Depending on how this happened, anything could be true about the life form developing. It didn't even have to be a human at all.

Setting his hand down on the spot, Riku tried to feel the life force of the mysterious collection of cells that would become a living being. While he did not have the talents Aerith did, he and Cloud were bonded in their own unique was due to the Jenova cells they both had. He did not expect to really feel anything but maybe he'd be able to tell something about the nature of…

Aqua eyes widened and he stared at where his hand was.

"Riku?" Cloud asked his name in concern, the first real showing of emotion since the others had left.

The younger half of the couple was unable to answer right away. He continued to stare as the essence, the soul, of the tiny one Cloud carried within him sand out to Riku. It connected to Riku, happy to be acknowledged and somehow communicating with clear language just what Riku was to it.

It wasn't possible.

"Riku." Cloud tried again. He knew his husband was more in tune with things such as auras and light and dark influences. Riku's abrupt reaction to his probe of the thing inside him could have meant almost anything.

Riku worked some moisture back into his mouth. "Cloud… this, this is _our_ baby."

The blond narrowed his eyes. "Riku, look-

"No," The silvered one cut him off gently. "This baby is _ours_. I don't know how but there are equal parts of you and me in her."

Cloud studied Riku's certain eyes. He had absolutely no doubt about this. "That makes even less sense than me being pregnant. If I have to, I could deal with some kind of foreign or alien entity. Hell, I'd even believe some messed up cell replication theory and that this is literally some clone of me I'm carrying but… sperm doesn't combine with sperm to make a baby."

"I know that, but…" Riku shook his head and his voice grew soft. "I can feel it, Cloud."

There was a tap on the door before it slowly opened and Aerith leaned in. She immediately noted the couple's expression and frowned as she stepped in and shut the door behind her. "I know this is a huge thing for the two of you to accept."

"Aerith." Riku spoke softly. "You've felt the baby, right?"

The woman paused. "I felt its life force, yes. There's nothing dark or impure. The child has the presence of any normal child."

"Did you feel me?"

Aerith blinked at the question. She had not gone into any depth determining the origin or composition of Cloud's baby. She had only gone so far as to determine if there was any malevolency, which there was none. She spied Riku's hand on Cloud's belly and a smile spread across her face. "It's your baby?"

"It's our baby." Riku corrected, his eyes meeting with Cloud's. "Together."

Blue eyes swam with confusion. He was still completely overwhelmed. "We need answers, Aerith, and we need them now."

"Cameron and Chase have put together a list of tests and procedures that should help figure out how this is possible and if we're going to have to do anything for the pregnancy itself. The how is still a complete mystery."

Riku took his gaze away from Cloud's. "There's only two even remotely feasible options; one is that some dormant experiment Hojo did became active, which is really unlikely. The second is some kind of magic."

"I really don't want Sephiroth involved in this, at least not yet." Cloud glanced over. "I don't want anyone else involved until you and I have a chance to figure things out."

Riku had to agree. "I think we should focus on the magical phenomenon idea and Merlin's the only guy we'd have to deal with for that."

"Merlin would be able to figure it out and he'd keep quiet about it, too." Aerith concluded, folding her arms. "Cameron and Chase are ready to start the medical research whenever you like."

Sighing, Cloud fell back on the pillow. "I'm going to be stuck here for a few days, aren't I?"

"That's going to be up to the doctors." Aerith walked over to join the couple at the bed. Riku's hand was still in place and she took Cloud's hand to lay it atop of it. "We don't know how this happened but the two of you have been blessed with something two men can never under normal circumstances have. I don't foresee anything bad coming from this."

Cloud studied their hands and skin beneath it. He knew that Riku had almost completely accepted this, had started coming to terms that they had somehow created a child but Cloud just could not… "It's too much right now. Until I know more… I just can't even begin to think of this as a…"

Riku leaned forward and kissed him, showing without words that he understood. "Yeah… we need more answers."

Nodding her understanding, Aerith brushed at Riku's bangs before leaning to the side and hugging Cloud. "I'll send Cameron in to stat the medical testing and then find Merlin."

"Thanks, Aer." Cloud murmured. As he spoke, he tightened his fingers around Riku's. He was still in shock about everything these past few hours had brought on but he knew they'd get things figured out. Aerith would make things as easy as she could for him and Riku.

She moved away and smiled. "No matter what the outcome, the two of you have more support than anyone can hope for. Everything will be okay."

As she left, the Strife couple exchanged looks. Cloud wordlessly scooted over and Riku lay down beside him. They removed their hands from the site on Cloud's abdomen but kept their fingers laced together.

They could only hope that Aerith was right.


	3. Chapter 3

How's this going, guys? This chapter brings the first of the extended family's reactions. Please review, okay?

* * *

Cameron and Chase came in a few minutes after Aerith left, Chase pushing in another cart loaded with various instruments and a lab tray. Riku did not move from his place and both men eyed the arrangement with dark expressions. Neither one of them had any positive association with medical testing or procedures.

"Um…" Cameron glanced at the couple. "I know you're going to argue this but its better if Riku steps out for most of this."

"He stays." Cloud stated simply.

"However," Riku kissed Cloud and got off the bed. "I will get out of the way. The faster you guys can do all of this the better."

Chase was clearly in agreement as he was already putting on gloves and opening sterile packs of instruments. "Simply guessing by the ultrasound image, we estimate the pregnancy to be at about eight weeks. Obviously, that's assuming we're dealing with traditional growth rates and development."

Eight weeks… Riku pursed his lips. It had been around that time that he had gotten into one of his dominant moods. He had been the one taking Cloud for about three days; his semen going into his husband's body. That would explain how his DNA fit into the puzzle. "That's one question answered."

Cameron looked at him curiously. "Something happened around that time?"

"It confirms that I really am the father." At her even more quizzical look, he briefly explained with no embarrassment. "I'm usually bottom. Around then, I was going through a topping phase."

Chase lifted an eyebrow as he assembled a nasty looking needle and syringe. "I just assumed you were the father from the beginning."

"My mother always told me a good doctor never assumes."

"All theories start as assumptions." The accented blond countered. "They're just assumptions backed with evidence."

Riku shrugged. "Doesn't matter, I guess. Besides, people who don't really know us all seem to assume that I'm seme. I have no idea why."

"It's a body-size stereotype." Cameron noted. She was also donning gloves. She placed her attention on Cloud. "We're going to be taking some tissue and cell samples."

Riku frowned deeply. "You're not messing with the baby, are you?"

"They can do whatever they have to." Cloud declared. "If they want to do one of those amniostatisis things, go for it."

"It's too dangerous this early into the pregnancy for that." Cameron informed both men. "Eventually there will have to be tests on the baby but right now, we're more concerned with Cloud. We need to figure out how you were able to conceive in the first place and whether or not you can support a pregnancy."

"I only care about the how." Cloud eyed the needle Chase was preparing warily. "Do I want to know where that's going?"

"No." Chase stated in a flat yet sympathetic tone. Cameron was preparing a much smaller needle and syringe. "We're going to take samples from various lymphatic sites for biopsy and we'll also need a semen sample."

"You're not putting that thing anywhere near my balls."

The male doctor chuckled. "This is for the sample from your abdomen. We'll let you and your husband handle the semen sample."

"We're going to take from four different lymphatic sites and schedule a biopsy of your hypothalamus this evening." Cameron listed. "We'll also do some scopy work while you're under for the biopsy."

"Surgery?" Cloud said the word thickly. "I really don't handle sedation well."

"We have a plan for that." Chase informed him simply. He turned toward the spiky blond and glanced at Cameron. "You ready with the local?"

She nodded and spoke to Cloud. "I need to numb the sites. You going to be able to handle that or is this going to be a problem?"

Cloud focused his attention entirely on Riku. The young man smiled reassuringly at him, silently bolstering his strength. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to relax. "Hurry up and get this done."

--0—0—

The pair of doctors left two hours later. They collected their samples, took some more blood and left what was needed for the semen sample. Riku had remained on the far side of the room throughout the procedures and sent his husband as much quiet support as he could. Cloud had maintained his total attention on Riku and the silver-haired man had noted every wince, every silent cry, along with the haunted look that tried to take over those blue eyes.

Riku crossed back to the bed when Cameron and Chase left. The whole experience had been terrible to watch and he smoothed some of Cloud's hair. "I'm sorry you had to go through that, love."

Cloud shrugged minutely. "It's necessary. I'm more concerned with how I'm going to react when they try to sedate me."

"They said they had a plan. Maybe they're going to cast Sleep on you first."

"That could work." Cloud nuzzled into Riku's hand. "I just want all of this to be done so we can go home…forget about all of this."

Riku worried his lower lip. Cloud's denial of his pregnancy was really starting to concern him. If even after all of this he couldn't acknowledge it, they were in for some serious problems very soon. They were going to have to make a decision whether to keep the pregnancy, if there even was the possibility of keeping it. He really did not know how he would handle it if Cloud seriously refused to keep the baby.

"When did they say they were returning?" Cloud murmured into his palm.

"A half hour." Riku could not help but smirk. He recognized Cloud's behavior. "You're all for getting this semen sample, aren't you?"

"I know it's totally inappropriate…" Blue eyes cast up toward Riku's face. "But I'm aroused as all hell."

Chuckling, Riku thought to himself _hormones_ and climbed up on the bed. He straddled Cloud's legs near the knees ad leaned forward, running his hands up his lover's hips. "You're really strange sometimes, Cloud."

"Get used to it." He retorted, sighing as Riku's fingers moved up his body, pushing his thin shirt out of the way. "Hormones are a bitch. Remember some of those swings Tifa went through?"

"Oh yeah." Riku brushed his thumbs at Cloud's nipples. He did not dare think that this conversation meant Cloud was going to keep the baby. "How do you want it?"

Cloud gasped softly. "It doesn't matter… whatever is going to be easiest."

Riku brought his body up and kissed his husband deeply, continuing to tease his nipples and carefully pressing his hips down against the shorter man's groin. Cloud was very obviously ready to go. He moved back down and tugged at the waistband of Cloud's loose pants.

Together they pulled the pants down enough to free Cloud's hardening erection. Riku wrapped his long fingers around it, earning a pleasured moan as he slowly worked his hand along the length. He was a little surprised how quickly the blond's body was reacting and was certain that this was going to be over very soon. Cloud was already writhing and gasping at Riku's steady rhythm.

Cloud made a noise and threw his head back, both telltale signs that he was close to cumming. Riku changed his grip slightly and speed the hand job up as he reached with his free hand for the empty storage container left for the semen collection. Moments after getting everything ready, Cloud came and Riku did his best to get as much of the milky jets he produced into the cup.

As Cloud relaxed, Riku sealed the specimen container and used a paper towel to clean up what he missed. "Well, that was easy."

The older male exhaled slowly, lightly freckled skin still flushed. "I don't know what you did but that was one of the best hand jobs I've ever had."

"I didn't do anything special." Riku set the cup back on the tray. He had read somewhere that pregnancy made sex more intense and pleasurable but he did not tell Cloud that. He didn't want to risk a bad reaction. "Guess I'm just that good."

"That and it's been a few days." Cloud straightened himself up. He settled in, sitting upright and folding his legs before him.

"Well you haven't been feeling well." Riku settled down across from him. "At least we know the worst of the nausea will pass soon."

Cloud visibly shut down again. "Yeah."

"Don't." Riku took hold of his knee and squeezed it. "Talk to me, Cloud. We have to deal with this together."

The blond glanced at Riku's hand. He really did not want to talk anymore about any of this until he had to. After all the tests were done, then he would think about his situation. He really wished Riku would just back off for a bit.

There was a soft tap on the door and Cloud and Riku frowned. They both could feel their visitor's presence and neither was very happy about it. This was not a conversation they were ready to have and they had to wonder who had called him.

Reluctantly, Riku called out. "Come in."

His brother did not hesitate. Sephiroth closed the door behind him and turned toward the couple. The Strife's knew just by looking at him that he somehow knew what was happening.

"I'm going to kill Aerith," Cloud muttered darkly.

"I haven't seen Aerith," Sephiroth said simply. "I noticed a few days ago that something felt different about Cloud. Demyx informed me of what happened at the meeting this afternoon and from that… the impossible pieces fell into place. I came to confirm the suspicion and your reaction did just that."

Cloud didn't seem nearly surprised as Riku that Sephiroth had figured out their situation. Blue eyes regarded his former nemesis. "Any clue how this happened to me?"

"A few." Sephiroth studied Cloud a beat before glancing at Riku. "Inform the doctors that Cloud is ready for his procedure."

The younger silver-haired man frowned. He was clearly being dismissed so that Sephiroth could talk to Cloud alone. This angered him and he fought back the urge to yell at his brother. This was his baby, his husband, they were dealing with. It was his family, not Sephiroth's.

He looked to Cloud and the anger faded into confusion and concern. It appeared that Cloud wanted him to go. The blond had his eyes adverted from Riku and Riku had the strong impression that he wanted to speak to Sephiroth alone.

"Yeah." Riku stood and his voice was tight.

Cloud suddenly reached over and took his hand. When Riku met his eyes, the older man smiled softly. "I love you."

"I know." Riku pulled away and picked up the semen sample cup. He passed his brother and opened the door. As he left, he threw a _love you_ over his shoulder.

Cloud studied the door for a long moment. He knew that Riku felt like he was being shut out but at least for right now, he just _couldn't_ talk to Riku about this. Riku wouldn't be able to look at the situation without his emotions influencing; what Cloud needed was an objective perspective.

Sephiroth spoke quietly, already knowing what Cloud wanted from him. "I'm uncertain that you should keep this pregnancy should it prove viable."

Cloud leaned back and turned his face toward the ceiling. "I don't think I have it in me to do this."

"Oh, I have no doubt that if you decide to see this pregnancy through you will come through amazingly well." The ex-SOLDIER spoke with certainty. "You have the determination to get through anything you set your mind on. However, there are other concerns and that is the heart of the dilemma.

"This will be an enormous physical strain on your body and there will likely be a great deal of procedures to keep you in proper condition. There are also the physiological changes which your body has already shown to not handle well. Even with that, those are minor compared to the largest issue."

Cloud knew exactly where Septhiroth was going because it had been the first place his mind had gone after the initial shock wore down. "I don't think I can emotionally deal with this. I've been… my mind won't allow me to accept this, Sephiroth. Right now, all I want is for them to abort the child and forget this happened. I don't even really care how it did."

"That's understandable." Sephiroth took a few steps closer. "Both you and Riku will have much to deal with as a result of this regardless of the ultimate outcome. Your relationship will inevitably change. Whatever you do, Cloud, don't shut him out."

"I don't mean to." The blond lifted his head and met his brother-in-law's eyes. "I just know that he's already decided he wants this baby if it's at all possible. He keeps stressing how it's our baby no matter how it happened."

"That comes from how he and I were created. Riku has always vowed that if he had children, they would never be treated with anything less than love and complete devotion no matter the circumstances of their origin."

"Yeah…" Cloud completely understood that and it didn't make the situation any easier. Desperate, he asked, "What do you think I should do?"

"I can't answer that for you." Sephiroth said in a soft tone. "This is one of the few situations where a simple 'follow your heart' will not suffice. My only advice; do not let fear cloud your judgment."

A single rap sounded before the door opened and Riku leaned his head in. He was still clearly upset about being sent out. "Cameron will be here in a minute to get you."

Nodding, cloud held out his hand. "Come here."

Riku did as requested, head hung down. As he passed, Sephiroth stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Riku."

Aqua-colored eyes barely looked at him.

"Sometimes, a person needs an outsider to give them perspective."

Riku took a breath and met his brother's eyes. "I know that. It doesn't stop me from feeling a little put out."

Something in Sephiroth's expression let him know that he understood. He moved the conversation forward, releasing Riku. "Since the most logical reason for this situation is some kind of magical influence, I assume that Aerith has gone to locate Merlin."

"Yeah." Riku continued to the bed. Cloud immediately pulled him to lie down next to him.

"Then I believe I shall assist them with their brainstorming and research." The winged man informed them.

Cameron entered the room with a wheelchair. In its seat was a new bag of IV fluid. "Are you about to leave, Sephiroth?"

"Yes, unless you need me for something."

"Do you know Sleep?"

Riku snorted despite the unhappy look on his face. "I wondered if that was the route you were going to take."

"Aerith suggested it since it's pretty much a given that Cloud isn't going to react well to us trying to anesthesize him."

"It'll work." Sephiroth confirmed, turning to face Cloud again. "Are you ready?"

Cloud closed his eyes a moment and centered himself. When he opened them again, he glanced at Riku. The couple shared a silent moment of communication, Riku reaching up to touch Cloud's face gently. Cloud squeezed his hand and kissed his knuckles. He then leaned back on the pillows and nodded at Sephiroth."

"Sleep."

Riku watched as Cloud's eyes instantly fell shut and his body relaxed. It took less than a minute for the spell to take full effect. Once he was completely asleep, Riku got up off the bed again and motioned for Cameron to come forward and do what she had to.

He stepped away and watched as she added the new bag to Cloud's IV drip. "That the actual anesthesia?"

"Yes. We should have had him get in the chair first. I'm going to need your help getting him into it." She finished with the bag and grumbled to herself. "We need to get those transport gurneys."

"I believe they're on the way." Sephiroth told her, observing Riku as he got his arms around Cloud's limp body. "Do you need any help?"

"I've got him." Riku breathed out, hefting his husband's weight and placing him in the wheelchair. "Damn, he's heavy."

"He's got a lot of muscle mass." Cameron noted. When Cloud was settled, she placed a strap around his chest to keep him upright. After he was secured in the chair, she got behind it and pushed him toward the door.

Riku was close behind her and as they approached, Sephiroth held the door open. Cameron took Cloud out into the hallway and Riku glanced at his brother in the doorway. They did not say anything but Riku understood that he had the elder's unwavering support. He took strength from that and some of his earlier resentment toward Sephiroth faded.

Aerith and Merlin were in the hall and the woman's green eyes widened in stunned surprise as they set upon Cloud. A haunted look came to them and she had to look away for a moment. "That's a condition I never wanted to see Cloud in again. At least it's obvious he's only asleep and not comatose."

Riku did not know what she was referring to but did not ask. Merlin was studying the sleeping man closely and Riku placed his attention on that. He hoped that the wizard could somehow just know what was going on with his husband.

"Oh my." Merlin adjusted his glasses. "Well this is interesting. You don't often see male pregnancy even in the magic world."

"Do you have any ideas?" Riku asked with a touch of hope in his words.

"A couple."

"Well, while you discuss it, I need to get Cloud to surgery." Cameron interjected.

"Yes, yes, of course." Merlin moved out of the way. Cameron took Cloud toward the operating room and he watched after her curiously. "Very interesting."

"What are your theories?" Riku pushed. Now that the old wizard was here, he felt a desperate need to get answers. "Is the baby going to be okay? Is the pregnancy even legitimate if it is magic induced? And what about-?"

"Hold on, boy, hold on. I'm going to need a bit more information before I can tell you all that."

Riku groaned in frustration. "This is insane! I can't…" He slumped against the wall and felt tears coming on. "I just need answers."

Sephiroth stepped beside him. "And we'll get them, Riku. Leave it to us to get this figured out. What you can do is support Cloud and seriously consider all of your options. Even when we have the answers, you and Cloud have several enormous decisions to make and you may not agree on them."

Riku regarded his brother for a long moment. He knew what he was getting at. "Cloud really doesn't want the baby, does he?"

Sephiroth was completely honest. "Currently, no. However, like you, he is reflexively reacting to a never considered possible scenario. Both of you need to take a step back and really think about what you want and what you're willing to do to get that."

Riku nodded slowly, taking in the older man's words. "Alright."

"Now, while Merlin, Aerith and I discuss the possibilities of what lead to this, I suggest you either go out to the lobby where Sora is waiting or have him come back here. Either way, I think you need some time to talk things out yourself."

The younger brother had no argument. "Can you send him back here?"

"I'll tell him." Aerith volunteered. She addressed the other two. "I'll meet you in the consult room."

Sephiroth and Merlin nodded. Together they headed for a location and Aerith gave Riku a brief smile before going for the lobby. Riku did not move from his spot and worked on centering himself.

He did not know what he was going to tell Sora.


	4. Chapter 4

Part four. Hopefully my explination makes sense.

Anyone have any theories as to how this is going to work out yet?

* * *

"What's wrong, Riku?" Sora rushed out as he approached the room. "If Cloud going to be okay?"

Riku forced a smile at his best friend as the younger man approached him. Even he knew how fake it was. "You'll never believe me."

Sora tilted his head in confusion. "What?"

Riku motioned with his head and re-entered the room Cloud had been staying in. Sora immediately followed. There was nothing in the room but the bed, the vital machine, the bed tray and a short cabinet. He ignored all these things and leaned against the far wall. He pressed his back upon it and rested his arms at his sides. "I… I need to tell you something that is going to sound totally insane."

Blue eyes settled on him with deep concern. "Considering some of the stuff we've already seen, it's got to be big."

"It's…"

"Whatever's wrong, we'll find a way to fix it. I'll do anything I can to help."

Riku chuckled humorlessly. "I'm not sure this is something you can really help with."

"Well, let me decide that." The younger man stated easily. "Whatever's wrong with Cloud, we'll find a solution."

The silvered male took a deep breath. "Wrong depends on how you look at it… Though I suppose the term applies on multiple levels."

"Riku."

It was best to just say it. "Cloud's pregnant."

Sora stared at him blankly. A long span of silence ensued before he blinked a few times and scrunched up his face. "What do you mean pregnant?"

"Exactly what I said."

"But… but…" Sora sputtered. "Guys don't get pregnant."

"Yeah, I was kinda aware of that already, Sor." Riku muttered in sarcasm. He sighed and slumped further. "I've felt it and seen the ultrasound. He's definitely pregnant."

"Is the baby yours?" Sora asked bluntly.

Aqua eyes narrowed. "Of course she is! What kind of question is that?"

"Hey! Given that Cloud being pregnant is impossible pretty much any way you look at it, it's a legit question." Sora shot back in mild harshness. "Something weird had to have happened so there's no reason to automatically assume you're the dad. Cloud could be having some strange clone of himself or gotten knocked up from a toilet seat for all I know."

Riku had to laugh. "We didn't think of the toilet seat one."

Sora grinned a little. "Well, it could happen."

"It makes as much sense as anything else."

The moment passed and both young men sobered up some. The seriousness of the situation was not lost but some of the tension had lifted slightly. Sora studied his friend carefully. "Is the baby going to be okay?"

Riku folded his arms before him and angled his face down. "We don't know yet. So far, everything looks okay but until we know how this happened, we don't really know anything."

Sora nodded slowly. He worried his lower lip and asked softly. "Do you want the baby?"

Riku didn't respond. That was what this all boiled down to, didn't it? He knew Cloud's feelings on the subject; his husband would be just fine aborting the pregnancy. Cloud was completely detached from all of this. He had no idea if Cloud even would be able to connect to the baby.

Knowing this, what did he want to see happen? At first the shock had gotten him also. This was… just such an impossible situation. Of every possible way he and Cloud had ever considered having children, this was not one of them. Yes, they had spoken of having kids before. It had been the main reason they had gotten the dogs, to see if they could handle being responsible for another life.

They had come to the mutual conclusion a few years ago that they were not ready for a child and the subject had not come up again. They were content being the godparents to Tifa's kids and assuming a mentor-role with several other kids in the community. Denzel still looked to Cloud as a father-figure. That was enough to satisfy any parental urgings.

…But now they had a real baby that was truly theirs and it did not matter to Riku how it happened. He would have been quite alright without a baby but now that he had one, Riku could not imagine giving it up for any reason. He did not understand how Cloud could even consider it. Granted, if there were going to be major complications or the doctors decided it was best for all involved if the pregnancy was terminated he would accept that but that was not the same as if they consciously decided to kill their child.

"Unless it's decided that it would be better for Cloud and the baby to not go through with this…" Riku spoke carefully. "I want our baby. I don't know how or why we've been given this chance but…"

Sora went to the end of the bed and sat on it. "What does Cloud want?"

"Cloud's detached from the whole thing and has withdrawn from me about it." An unpleasant weight settled in Riku's chest. "He doesn't want to keep it."

"That doesn't surprise me at all." Sora put his feet together and held his ankles. "Cloud doesn't deal with anything unless it's thrown directly in his face."

"He talked to Sephiroth… That hurt a lot."

"Sephiroth's opinions are rarely influenced by emotion. If you want an informed, unbiased opinion, he's the one to talk to."

"I know; still hurts though." As Riku talked, something crept up inside him and it slowly froze him. This paralyzing mix of fear and worry and apprehension consumed his entire being. He forced it back and focused on Sora.

"I bet." The brunet picked at a shoelace. "Man, I can't believe this is happening. I mean… I'm dying to know how this is even possible. And shouldn't you be the knocked up one?"

"I was going through a seme phase eight weeks ago."

"Ah." Sora tilted his head in thought. "So obviously whatever happened occurred at least that long ago. When was the time before that?"

"That I topped?" Riku had to think back. "About five months ago… It 's been a long time."

"So we need to figure out what happened between then and eight weeks ago."

Riku smiled at his surrogate brother. Sora had taken charge of the situation and was working on figuring out the mystery. He did not try to influence Riku's thoughts or decisions; he just listened and moved on. "Thanks, Sora."

"Hmm?" The younger looked confused.

Rather than explain, Riku pulled away from the wall. "If you're going to try to work things out, we should see if the others have put anything together."

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Sora scrambled off the bed. "Where is Cloud anyway?"

The two headed for the door. "Getting a biopsy, it shouldn't be much longer."

Before reaching it, Riku stopped. He was again struck by that overpowering combination of emotion, freezing him. "Sora?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm really scared."

He felt Sora's hand on his arm and glanced over to meet confident blue eyes. "I know, Riku. It's going to be okay."

Sora's words calmed him and he nodded. He opened the door and the friends exited to the right. There were two consult rooms, one for surgical and the other for emergency services. They passed the emergency one and paused before the closed surgical one. Riku tapped on it once before Sora opened it and they went in.

"…that would be the most logical of the possibilities." Sephiroth was commenting.

"What would?" Sora asked, coming over and dropping on the floor near the winged man's feet.

"Greek gods are notorious for immaculate conception and virgin pregnancies." Merlin explained as Riku leaned on the arm of the loveseat his brother was sitting upon. "While I've never heard of them doing so on a male, it would not be impossible."

Sora gaped. "So your thinking Hades is behind this?"

"It's a possibility." Aerith was standing beside Merlin.

"I thought in those cases the gods would impregnate the person with their own child." Riku frowned. "That wouldn't explain how it's me and Cloud's baby."

"He could have modified the original spell." Merlin shrugged. "I can think of a few ways he could have that would have made this scenario possible."

"You really think that Hades could have been holding a grudge against Cloud for this long?" Sora did not sound at all convinced.

"When you're immortal, a decade isn't a very long time. There have been stories of gods waiting half a century to claim their revenge." The old, bearded man noted. "This spell could have been placed years ago and conception simply never occurred until now."

"So how do we verify any of this?" Aerith queried.

"The test and endoscopy will tell us a great deal." Sephiroth stood, his wings stretching out. "However, I often find it best to go directly to the source."

Sora looked up. "You're going to the Underworld?" When Sephiroth nodded, the brunet also got to his feet. "I'm coming with. Between the two of us, Hades will spill anything he knows really fast."

"Excellent idea!" Merlin exclaimed. "While you're doing that, I shall go through my library and locate anything I can on the subject."

Riku quietly watched as the others in the room put together a plan to get to the bottom of the cause for the situation he and Cloud found themselves in. With their support, they should have this figured out quickly. Given the effort they were putting in now and what Sephiroth, Sora and Aerith said earlier, Riku knew that at least the three of them would be there to help them through all of this.

The fear lifted some more.

Merlin bid them farewell and disappeared in a cluster of bubbles. In his wake, Aerith said, "I know that this has become Cameron and Chase's top priority. Between them and Merlin, we should be able to piece this together quickly."

"We'll have this figured out in no time." Sora concluded brightly. He turned to Riku. "And then we can start thinking of baby names."

Riku huffed off a dismissive breath. "I'd hold off on that one."

"He's gonna change his mind, Riku." Sora sounded completely confident. Then he suddenly frowned. "Unless the baby is gonna be a total mutant freak and not the cool X-men kind. Then there might be an issue."

"I highly doubt that will be a concern." Sephiroth smiled a touch. "Despite the unnatural circumstances allowing for it, this baby was conceived with love in the normal way."

Riku looked at his brother gratefully. While he did not believe for a moment that Sephiroth would view this child as some kind of abomination, they both knew how true monsters were created, it was a relief to hear that Sephiroth was of the belief that this was going to be a normal child. The question remaining was if Cloud would ever see it that way.

"Cloud just needs to get things settled in his own mind." Aerith added.

Riku only nodded.

Sephiroth regarded Riku. "Will you be all right with Sora and I gone?"

"I have Aerith and I think Cloud is starting to come around. Now that we have something to start working with, we can start really talking about this."

"Just don't push him." Sephiroth advised. "This is one of the few instances where I believe it would be best to let him proceed at his own pace."

"Yeah. I just hope he doesn't take too long." The younger silver-haired male flicked his bangs. "There's another life on the line."

"We should leave." Sephiroth glanced at Sora. The brunet simply took his arm and saluted Riku and Aerith with a little wave. Then the pair teleported out, leaving the other two to sit and wait.

--0—0—

Cameron came in an hour later to tell them that Cloud had been returned to his room and was doing well. She informed them that as soon as they had some results, they would inform them. She then went back toward the lab as Riku and Aerith went to the room.

Cloud was still asleep and Riku sat on the edge of the bed holding his hand. The blond had a thick gauze bandage on the back of his head near the base but otherwise appeared completely fine. After a short while, Aerith left saying she was going to see if there was anyone still waiting in the lobby for updates.

Cloud finally began stirring and Riku stroked his thumb along the back of his hand. His husband turned his head and made a faint noise before slowly opening his eyes. It took him a bit to focus them on Riku.

"Hey, love." Riku smiled. Cloud squeezed his hand and looked at him groggily. "Everything went fine."

"Good." Cloud's voice was dry. "They… say anything yet?"

"No, it's only been about an hour."

"Oh." Cloud coughed. "I need some water."

"Okay." The younger released his hand and slid off the small bed. "I'll be right back."

Riku walked out and Cloud shifted his body. He hated the feeling of waking up from any sort of sedation and was a bit nauseous again. This did not combine well with the floaty, not-quite-in-his-body feeling he had.

He pressed his hand to his belly. He had not meant to go for the site of his pregnancy but that was where his hand ended up and he glanced down at it. Almost to himself, he murmured. "Tell me, kid, are you worth all of this?"

A few minutes passed before Riku returned. He was not alone though; Aerith and Chase were with him. The two followed him in, Chase holding a clipboard and looking confused but enlightened. Aerith did not appear to know what he was about to say and Cloud had the impression that the three had simply run into each other in the hallway.

Riku handed him a large cup of water and as he took a sip from it, the young man turned toward the doctor. "You have something?"

"Cameron is still working with the tissue samples but we have discovered two major things." He flicked his eyes toward Aerith. "Aerith says that Sephiroth and Merlin are working on the how for this."

"Yeah." Riku confirmed. "Merlin is doing some research and Sephiroth and Sora went to confirm a lead."

"Sora knows about this?" Cloud's voice was tight.

Aqua eyes met angry blue. "Sephiroth told me to tell him because you won't talk to me about this. You're not the only one who has to deal with it; I'm part of this, too."

"Who else knows?"

"No one."

Cloud was still upset about another person knowing about his condition but he knew that Riku was right. He hadn't been in a position to really talk to Riku about this and Sora was practically Riku's brother. He huffed out a breath and closed his eyes briefly. He wasn't so much upset about telling Sora as he was that he had not been informed first.

Deciding to let it go, he replaced his attention on Dr. Chase. "What have you discovered?"

"We ran the analysis on your semen and…" The doctor made a disbelieving noise. "Well, you don't have sperm."

Cloud blinked and Riku started. Aerith tilted her head and lifted an eyebrow. Riku glanced at Cloud and saw the same question in his expression; If Cloud didn't have reproductive cells, how did the baby get his DNA?

Chase continued. "Just like your hormone levels switched to a female orientation, so have your reproductive cells."

"Wait." Riku interrupted. "So he has eggs instead of sperm?"

"Yes."

"Wow." Cloud exclaimed softly. "For some reason, I didn't expect that. I probably should have but…"

"Yeah." Riku agreed. This information explained how the embryo came to be; when he was topping, his sperm got combined with the eggs.

However, there was a major flaw with that. In gay male sex, the penis was inserted into the rectum and the ejaculate would remain in the colon until it died. The male reproductive organs where the eggs in Cloud's body would be were completely isolated from the large intestine. There was no way the two things could have been in the same location for fertilization to occur. Plus, there was the strange location of implantation.

"Did the scopy reveal anything?" Riku inquired.

"That's the second part." Chase stepped forward. He turned the clipboard so that the Strifes could see the images on it. Aerith also came over to look. "There were taken inside your lower colon. If you look here-" he pointed to a spot in one of the pictures. "-there's a sphincter that shouldn't exist."

There was indeed a sealed ring in one of the pockets of the large intestine. Riku narrowed his eyes as he considered the possibilities. "So, are you thinking that it opened and allowed the semen to enter the abdominal cavity?"

"Yes." The blond doctor flipped a few pages. "We also discovered that the space between the testicle and epidermis is wider than normal. Some ejaculate could easily escape there and end up in the abdominal cavity as well."

It was all making sense now, at least medically. The odds of all of this happening exactly as it did were horrendously against it but considering they were nearly positive there was magical influence, it was within the realm of possibility. Riku still had no clue what Hades' motivation for such a seemingly random form of revenge would be.

Cloud looked bewildered by everything and was trying to piece together what he was being told. "Okay, tell me if I have this right. Somehow, I have eggs instead of sperm and due to random holes in my body, Riku managed to impregnate me."

"Simply put, yes." Chase confirmed.

The spiky blond nodded slowly. While he had no clue as to how any of this was remotely possible, it fit together too well to not be true despite the insanity of it. "Riku?"

Something about his tone set Riku on alert. If Cloud was going to attempt to blame him for this… "Yeah?"

"You are never topping again."

There was a pause before Riku burst out laughing. He did not know why, it wasn't that funny, but tears were coming to his eyes and he had to put a hand on the bed to keep upright. Maybe it was just the emotion of the past several hours.

Cloud was smiling weakly, feeling calmer than he had in hours. The moment of brevity had bumped him out of the detachment he had settled into and he finally felt he could begin dealing with the situation he, and Riku, were in. He waited for his husband to settle down before speaking to Aerith. "What's Merlin's idea about this?"

"He thinks that Hades' is behind this." The woman answered. "The Greek gods have a way to induce virgin births and he thinks Hades modified one of the spells."

"And Sephiroth and Sora went to ask him directly." Cloud concluded, looking to Riku for confirmation.

"Yeah."

"Alright." He took another drink of his water. "Chase, figure out anything else you can. Aerith, could you give me and Riku and few minutes?"

"Sure." The Cetra worried her lower lip but gave Riku an encouraging smile. Chase stepped out and she followed, glancing back at the couple for a moment before leaving.

Alone again, Riku waited for Cloud to say what he needed to. He had wanted his lover to talk to him about what he was feeling but now that Cloud was ready, he wasn't sure he wanted to hear it. What he already knew was painful and he didn't know if he could hear it directly from Cloud.

Cloud's voice was soft. "Look at me, Riku."

Riku did so, flicking his bangs because he knew that Cloud needed to see his eyes. Much of their communication was nonverbal, from looks and expressions and subtle movements. He doubted that was going to be enough this time.

"I know you want this baby, Riku."

"And I know you don't."

Cloud heard the anger and hurt in Riku's tone. It greatly pained him and he sighed. "It's not that exactly. I just… I really don't know how to explain how I feel about this."

"Do you feel anything?" The younger muttered bitterly.

"What?"

Riku felt something break inside him and nearly shouted. "You are completely detached from this pregnancy. You don't care at all that there's a living being growing inside you, completely dependent on you. If that's how you really feel about our child, then you should just abort it because I won't let my child grow up like I did. My child will be loved and supported and _never _question it!"

Cloud stared as tears rand down his husband's cheeks and his body slightly shook. Sephiroth had been correct about Riku's perspective on this and it had even sounded like Sephiroth was of the same mind. He found himself agreeing with it also. If he couldn't love and support his child like he should, should he even have the child in the first place?

His thoughts came to a screeching halt. _His child?_ When had he even thought of this thing growing inside him as a real baby, let along his baby?

Reflexively, he ran his fingers along the solid mass in his belly. "That's not true, Riku. I'm not detached…at least not anymore."

Riku wasn't sure he believed him. He studied the older man carefully for several long moments, looking for every trace of emotion revealed by his expression and subtle movements. When he noticed the way Cloud touched his abdomen, he finally believed that Cloud was beginning to truly acknowledge their child's existence. That did not mean that he would decide to keep it but it was movement in the right direction.

"I don't know what to do, Riku." Cloud's voice cracked. "This is just… too big of a decision. I'm trying to think about what's best for all of us and I can't do it."

Riku came to the bed and Cloud moved to give him some room. The taller one settled in beside him and took Cloud into his arms. Kissing the head of soft, blond spikes, Riku placed his hand on top of Cloud's. Both hands rested on the spot where their impossible baby grew.

Neither one spoke for a long time.


	5. Chapter 5

I did some tweaking to my progression for this story. I'm trying to keep at realistic as possible. Reviews are amazing, guys. Thanks for reading.

* * *

The Strife couple had fallen into a light sleep that was disrupted by a hesitant tap on the door. Both stirred, Riku pulling Cloud closer even as he opened his eyes. He glanced down and found blue eyes already gazing up at him.

"I'm really tired of this place."

"Me, too," Riku agreed. "I think we'll do much better at home."

"I want to go home."

"So do I. We'll ask about it next time one of the doctors come in."

The knock came again and the couple gave each other annoyed looks. Cloud sat up and rolled his shoulders. As he did, Riku stretched his back and told their visitor to enter.

This time it was Cameron, who held a folder that was likely Cloud's chart. The woman smiled at them as she approached. "How are you doing?"

"That's a loaded question," Cloud said dryly.

"Well, let's go with physically."

"I'm alright." He shrugged. "Still hungry… want to go home, too."

Cameron nodded understandingly. "Let me go through some things with you and then we'll get you discharged. The rest of this can be dealt with during regular appointments."

"What have you got?" Riku queried, squeezing Cloud's hand.

"All of the tissue samples are normal , confirming to us at least that however the pregnancy occurred, it was not by any biologic or physiological means."

"Good," Cloud stated softly. "That means it can be reversed. I'm not permanently messed up."

"In theory, yes." The doctor held the folder to her chest with both arms. "Now, as to the pregnancy itself… so far as we can tell it's completely viable. There's full implantation and there's enough separation of the abdominal wall there for the baby to grow and the delivery would be by cesarean section. The only concern is if the hormone levels will stay where they need to be and if your body can tolerate the strain on it."

Cloud averted his eyes from her and Riku. "And if I want an abortion?"

Riku froze at the casual way Cloud asked the question. Had his husband already made up his mind? Was there no chance of him choosing to keep their baby? It had sounded earlier like he was at least considering it.

Cameron seemed slightly taken aback by the question but she answered professionally. "No one here will perform an abortion after the first trimester unless it's medically necessary. The latest you can decide that is at thirteen weeks unless you find someone off-world."

_Five more weeks then._ Cloud thought to himself. He had five weeks to decide if his child lived or died. It was not a decision he wanted to make and he cursed again at being in this position.

Cloud noted Riku's reaction and moved the conversation forward. "If the hormone levels don't stay up, what's the solution?"

"We can do hormone therapies to them where they need to be. We'll have to order them though, so we'll need to keep on top of it. You'll have to have blood work every three days."

Riku watched his husband carefully, wishing he had the power to read his mind. It hurt terribly that Cloud kept going back to the abortion idea. He understood that all of the options had to be examined but for him, terminating was not an option.

"Can we go home?" The blond man had a quiet pleading quality to his question. "I really can't stand to be here anymore."

"I'll start your discharge." Cameron informed them. "We'll need to see you in two days for a blood work-up and to start putting together a plan of treatment."

"Fine."

Cameron looked between the couple, clearly concerned about them. She appeared to wait to say something but refrained. "I'll send Aerith with your instructions."

--0—0—

Riku and Cloud walked quietly out of the medical center and into the early night air. Cloud had a folder loaded with information and things he needed to do over at least the next few days. He had not bothered to look through it yet.

"You still hungry?" Riku flicked his eyes over.

"Yeah, but I'll find something at home. I don't want to stop anywhere."

He just did not want to risk running into anyone. Riku supposed he could not blame him for that; they were both rather revealing to their friends. It was probably better for now to avoid the others if they could. Riku doubted either of them could handle any questioning yet.

"I think we have taquitos."

"Those would be good." Cloud actually thought they sounded amazing. Beef taquitos with some hot sauce… What the hell was with him and hot sauce lately?

They were quiet again for the rest of the journey home. As they entered the house, the dogs came running over from the living room, whining happily to see them. Thankfully, Sephiroth had been at the house most of the day so Zack and Seph had been let out and there wasn't likely to be any messes. The couple greeted the canines then motioned for them to get out from underfoot.

"How many taquitos do you want?" Riku asked as he stepped toward the kitchen.

"Um… like ten." Cloud decided, turning for the living room after the dogs. Over his shoulder, he added, "And bring some hot sauce."

He heard Riku's light chuckle and smiled a touch to himself. At least Riku had something to be amused about in this situation. He sat on the sofa and held the folder near his knees. The dogs jumped up to lay on either side of him, the Labradors taking up all the remaining space.

"You two are too big to be up here," he muttered, one hand releasing the folder and reaching over to rub Zack's ears.

Cloud cast his eyes back to the folder and sighed. Laying it on his lap, he opened it and skimmed past the actual discharge papers, lightly tossing them on the coffee table. He then picked up the first page of instructions Cameron had given. Thankfully, it appeared that there wasn't going to be much he had to change about his lifestyle to ensure the healthiest pregnancy. Most of it didn't apply to him and outside of some dietary and activity limitations, there wasn't much he was going to have to do differently.

He flipped the page and went to the next. This was a weekly breakdown of the baby's development in the womb; or in his case abdomen. It also detailed changes in the mother's body. He had to wonder what of those would affect him.

Casually, he read over the eight week entry. Their baby was about 1.6 centimeters long and weighed around 1 gram. The eyelid folds, nerve cells and the retina were beginning to form in the eye as well as the tip to the nose and ears. The valves are present in the heart and the tubes leading from the throat to the functioning part of the lungs are branched. The baby's body was straightening and lengthening out, as well as the arms forming elbows and the fingers nearly completed. The baby's head was much larger in relation to the rest of his/her body.

Riku waited for the microwave to finish, pouring a large glass of sweet tea. He had finally perfected the beverage after three years of trying to brew it exactly as his country-born husband liked it. It had been Irvine who helped him get it right and now he had to have at least a gallon of it at all times for Cloud and if Irvine or Zack randomly showed up.

As he put remained of the jug away, the microwave finally finished. He returned to it and removed the paper plate from it. Carefully balancing it with the bottle of hot sauce in one hand, he grabbed the tea glass and made his way back to the living room.

He found Cloud sitting on the sofa with the dogs, reading over some of the papers he had been given. Riku had no idea what they were about of how Cloud was reacting to it, his expression gave away nothing. He was hesitant to interrupt his reading but also curious to know what it was.

Cloud glanced up and immediately closed the folder. He sat forward, setting it on the coffee table with some loose papers. "Finally."

Riku crossed the room and handed him the plate and hot sauce. Once his hand was free, he snapped his fingers and the dogs left the sofa to curl up on the floor near their feet. He set the tea on the table and went to sit beside his husband.

Cloud had already finished off one taquito, and was pouring a line of hot sauce along the length of another one. When done, he bit into it and made a noise of near-bliss. "This is amazing."

"It's just microwaved taquitos, Cloud." Riku watched him an amusement. "And, need I remind you that you don't even like hot sauce?"

"Well, apparently the baby does and she gets what she wants."

Riku blinked and Cloud paused, the sentence hanging between them.

Cloud slowly put down the taquito. "Riku, I-"

A knock on the door cut him off and Sora bounded through the front door. He had an amazed look to his eyes. "You guys are not going to _believe_ what we found out!"

Sephiroth had come in by now and regarded the couple on the sofa. He clearly understood they had interrupted something and took up a spot near the TV. He did not say anything but silently analyzed Riku and Cloud's emotional states. It was difficult to tell his reaction to what he saw.

Cloud placed his plate on the table beside his hospital folder, suddenly not at all hungry. "Is Hades behind this?"

Sora frowned in confusion. "How did you know…?"

"Yes," Sephiroth answered Cloud, ignoring Sora's question. He leaned his back against the entertainment center and folded his arms. "And he's quite proud of his accomplish. Apparently, he got exactly what he wanted."

"And that was?" Cloud asked.

"He knows your fear of failure and one of the strongest kinds of fear is that of failing your child. He also figured out that due to this, if you were to be confronted with a child you were absolutely responsible for, you would melt down and chose to be rid of it instead of taking the risk of failure as a parent.

"That would have ended things too soon and not have the lasting effects he desired so he made it so he changed the structures of your body. This assured that Riku would be the other parent when you conceived. By doing so, he made it impossible for you to simply abort the pregnancy."

"So, he put you in an impossible situation on every front, knowing that no matter what you chose, you would be emotionally tortured and psychologically traumatized." Sora finished, also watching Cloud.

Mako-infused blue eyes stared at nothing as Cloud processed this final piece of the puzzle. So, Hades had finally decided his revenge on him for breaking that damned contract a decade ago. Killing him hadn't worked so he had spent years figuring out something that would. "Lucky him, goal accomplished."

Riku moistened his lips and settled further into the cushions. While it was good to finally know how and why all of this happened, he did not care anymore. All that really mattered to him was what was going to happen to their child. He did not know what Cloud was going to do with this information or how it would affect his decision.

Cloud abruptly stood. He passed Riku and began pacing the room, something he never normally did. After five minutes of this, he began ranting. "What is it about me that makes everyone chose me to fuck up? I never asked for any of this. I really wish sometimes I had just stayed in Nibleheim and been content being nothing to nobody. Ever since I decided I wanted to be someone important, to make people notice me, it's been one thing after another. Even all the good things that have happened are tainted by it!"

Riku's eyes tracked Cloud, his heart clenching further with each circuit the man made. Cloud thought of their baby as another bad thing in his life; another burden to bear, a curse placed upon him. There was nothing positive in his attitude, no bright side. If that was how Cloud was going to view their baby, maybe an abortion was the best cause.

"So what?" Sora narrowed his eyes at his best friend's husband. "Who cares why this happened? You and Riku have something a lot of couples can only dream of. It doesn't matter how or why the baby was conceived; it exists now."

"Only because some freak made it happen." Cloud retorted. The moment the words were out of his mouth he froze. He did not turn to look at Riku but he could perfectly picture his expression. After a brief silence, he whispered, "And it's not the same, Riku."

Riku knew the details were not but when one got down to it, the fundamental situation was. Riku and Sephiroth were both created in unnatural fashions as was the child that Cloud now carried. However, there was a significant difference between them and the baby that, to Riku at least, made all the difference in the worlds.

He was surprised when Sephiroth quietly voiced the words he was about to. "Riku and I were created for scientific and ultimately selfish reasons, Cloud. There was no desire to be a parent, no joy beyond that of continuing research, and most importantly, no love or warmth associated with our conception. The child you carry within you, and have no doubt that it is a child, was created by an act of absolute love and devotion regardless of the circumstances that made it possible."

Cloud studied the wall before him, letting the words run through his mind. Sephiroth was right and he could safely assume Riku was seeing this the same way. In the end, maybe it really did not matter how this happened. Perhaps it was time for him to stop using that to avoid the question that really was important right now:

Did he want to keep this child?

Riku had no idea what was going through his husband's head right now. All he knew was that none of the information given by Sephiroth and Sora changed anything. As far as he was concerned, they should be grateful for this chance. If Cloud let go of the how, focus on the life inside of him and that only, they could turn Hades' revenge around and make it a wonderful event.

"You really want this kid, don't you?"

Aqua eyes blinked at the question. He did not know why he was being asked because he thought it had been pretty obvious that he did. "Well, yeah. I mean, this is our baby. But… if you don't… I'd rather…" He took a deep breath and pushed back the pain of what he was about to say. He had to be logical right now. "I'd rather we didn't have her if you're going to end up resenting or being detached from her. If you don't think you can ever bond with her…"

Cloud idly placed a hand on his stomach. "I would never resent a child… it's not like they chose to be here…"

"I think what Riku's saying is," Sora softly spoke. "If you can't love this baby with your entire being without reservation, it may be best for all if you didn't see this through."

Suddenly angry, Cloud waved a hand. "I can't think about this anymore. Everyone, please, just… back off me for a while."

"We're not-" Sora started but was cut off by Sephiroth's raised hand. The winged man minutely shook his head.

Riku wanted to push the subject but knew it was best not to. If Cloud was telling them to leave him be, he had to be much more conflicted than he was letting on. He was beginning to wish they were more like other couples who actually communicated normally.

Sephiroth's feline eyes set upon Cloud. "You should finish eating your… unusual choice for a meal."

"Yeah." Sora chuckled. "What's with the hot sauce? I thought you hated that stuff."

"He does." Sephiroth lightly smirked, watching Cloud return to the sofa and pick up his plate. "Apparently someone else does, however."

Cloud made a face, not amused by the winged man's tone. "Yeah, gonna have to get used to being ordered around by someone inside me again."

Riku glared at him. "It's totally not the same-"

"I didn't say it was, Riku." Cloud interrupted gently. "And I didn't mean to imply that it was."

"Then what did you mean?"

"I meant," Cloud sighed. "That I know what it's like to have little control over my own body. That's it."

Riku took a breath and willed himself to calm down. He knew he was overreacting because of his frustration. In an effort to keep from snapping or saying anything that would cause an unnecessary argument, he reached for the plate of taquitos. "Let me reheat these."

The blond let him take the food and the younger man stood. Riku took the plate to the kitchen and set it in the microwave. He paused for a moment, closing his eyes and collecting himself before setting the timer for a minute. The start button had barely been pressed when he heard the soft rustling of feathers.

"Are you going to be able to accept it if Cloud does chose to terminate?"

Riku shut his eyes again and set both his hands on the edge of the counter. "I hope so… I want to be. I know it'll take awhile."

"I wish I could make this easier for you both." Sephiroth spoke quietly. "I don't know what Cloud's going to decide but regardless, it's going to have a profound effect on each of you."

Riku turned toward his brother. "I'm getting mixed messages and that's what's really frustrating me. Some of the things he's said and a few of his actions indicate that's he's at least subconsciously trying to bond. His conscious mind, however, just doesn't want to deal with this."

"All of which is understandable." Sephiroth leaned against the short out-jutting of wall at the kitchen entrance. "If I thought some kind of counseling would do any good, I would recommend it in a second."

"I'm strongly leaning towards restarting it for myself regardless of the outcome."

"It's a very good idea."

The microwave went off, breaking their conversation. Riku removed the taquitos from it and carried the plate toward Sephiroth. He paused before him and glanced up. "If I asked you to find a way to kill Hades-"

"Nothing would give me greater pleasure right now, Brother."

Riku smiled and the siblings returned to the living room. Seph had gotten back on the sofa, his head laying on Cloud's leg. Zack had decided to try to climb his large body into Sora's lap and was head-butting the brunet's chest to get attention. Both human males had been speaking quietly but stopped at Riku and Sephiroth's entrance.

"Seph, down." Cloud ordered softly and the dog jumped to the floor.

Riku stepped over and held out the plate to his husband. Cloud instead took hold of his wrist and tugged gently to get him to sit beside him. As Riku did, he retrieved the plate with his free hand. Once Riku was settled, Cloud placed a hand on his knee and squeezed it.

"I believe I shall retire now." Sephiroth announced, certain that at least for tonight things were settled. "If you need me, don't hesitate to wake me up."

The couple on the sofa nodded, and bid him good night. As he went upstairs, Sora stretched his back. He ducked another attempt by Zack to lick his face then stood. "I should get home, too. Axel will start trashing the apartment if he gets too bored."

Cloud picked up a taquito. "There's a bet going as to when we're gonna start seeing random acts of minor arson."

"He wouldn't resort to that; he likes his job as fire marshal too much." Sora grinned. "Plus he knows that Leon would kick his butt off-world so fast the flames would be put out by the speed."

"Definitely."

Riku looked at his best friend gratefully. "Thanks for everything today, Sor."

"No prob, Ku." Blue eyes fixed upon Cloud as Sora pointed at him. "Think about what I said, okay?"

Cloud nodded once. "I will."

"Good." Sora smiled a bit and walked backwards toward the door. "If I run into anyone, I'll tell them your resting and to leave you alone for the night."

"That would be great."

"Yep." The spiky-brunet waved. "See you in the morning."

The door closed behind him, leaving the couple and their dogs in an odd silence. Cloud continued eating his taquitos and Riku just watched him. It was almost painfully obvious they were trying to not talk about what was occupying their minds.

"Do you want the last one?" Cloud asked, picking up his sweet tea.

"I'm fine. Sora and I had pizza earlier."

"That was hours ago."

"I'm not hungry." Riku knew his voice was clipped and he added in a softer tone. "I'm sorry. That wasn't meant to sound snippy."

"I know." Cloud set the tea back down. He tossed the plate beside it and half-turned toward his lover. "And I know you're frustrated with me right now. I wish I could just…"

Riku lifted a hand and brushed at the hair that framed Cloud's face. "I don't want you to rush this. We have to do what we feel is best for ourselves and the baby. I want us to be sure about whatever we decide."

Nodding a bit, Cloud met Riku's aqua eyes. He worried his lower lip. "Sora brought up something earlier… I need you to know, Riku, that if I decided that I can't go through this… it isn't a reflection on you. And it doesn't mean that I love you less. If this baby were anyone else's, it would already be gone."

"I know," whispered Riku with a faint smile. That was one of his concerns; he did not want Cloud to keep the baby simply because Riku was the father. That reasoning, that motivation, was what would lead to the resentment and detachment he feared. "I can truthfully say I would not take it as a personal slight."

The blond felt a bit of relief. Since Sora had mentioned the possibility, it had been on the front of his mind. He had gotten so caught up in trying to figure out what he was going to do, he had lost sight that Riku was a part of this also. While it was his body and ultimately his decision, this baby also belonged to Riku. His decision would have a profound effect on both of them.

Exhaling loudly, Cloud rubbed at his forehead. "I think what we need right now is to get some sleep."

That sounded like a good idea to Riku. They were both emotionally exhausted and the rest would allow their minds to settle. Some time away from the subject would make it easier to re-tackle it later. "Yeah, that sounds good."

Cloud stood, taking up his plate and glass with him. Riku followed him to the kitchen and watched him throw away the last taquito. Cloud then rinsed off the plate and placed both it and the glass in the dishwasher; Riku despised dishes being left in the sink and the older man had learned very quickly to not do it. Then Cloud walked back over to him.

Riku took his hand and tugged his husband closer. Cloud wrapped an arm around his waist and kissed him softly. "I love you."

"Always." The silvered one returned sincerely.

They then headed for bed.


	6. Chapter 6

Riku yawned behind a hand as he shuffled around the staircase and went to the kitchen. A full day had passed since they got the news; Cloud had slept yesterday away and Riku had thrown himself into housecleaning that really did not need to be done. Sephiroth had left before Riku got up and only say him for a few minutes that night before retiring to his room. When Cloud was awake, they did not talk about the pregnancy.

They had not spoken to anyone outside the house and he was sure the others would be worried about them. If they didn't come out and say things were okay they would soon have their friends showing up at their door. It was unlikely that he or Cloud were up to that kind of confrontation.

Before entering the kitchen, he could hear soft murmurs and frowned slightly. He didn't think anyone would be checking up on them this soon. Who was Sephiroth talking to and what were they talking about?

Sephiroth was sitting at the table, Leon in the chair across from him. The sable-haired man's back was to Riku and there was a definite terseness to his position. Riku glanced at his brother, suddenly feeling very paranoid. Sephiroth would not have told him…

"How's Cloud this morning?" Leon asked in a slightly louder tone than he and Sephiroth had been using.

"Still sleeping." The younger man answered, turning for the refrigerator. "I doubt he's waking up any time soon."

"I figured that from what Sephiroth said." Leon took a sip of his coffee. "Sora called me earlier and said he was going to be handling Cloud's deliveries again today. That was enough to get me to come over and check up on Cloud myself. Zack's starting to get paranoid since no one's heard from either of you since leaving the hospital."

Riku nodded slowly, pulling out some juice. "Well, I'm sure Sephiroth has been giving you the updates."

"He has."

Riku restrained himself from glancing back at his brother. He trusted Sephiroth to keep their secret but Leon was highly observant and could read the winged man rather well. He was certain that Leon had figured out that they were keeping something from him. Hopefully, he wouldn't pry too much; he was very good about giving people their space but when it came to Cloud, everyone felt they needed to make him open up.

"If Cloud's going to be out for awhile, let me know so we can get people to cover for him." Leon took a final drink of coffee before standing up. He crossed the room to the sink and rinsed the mug out, steel-grey eyes flicking toward Riku. "And if there's anything I can do to help either of you, you know we're all here for you both."

Riku almost broke down and spilled everything at that statement. He felt a surge of emotion and fought back the urge to tell Leon everything. He knew the former SeeD could help; he was great asking the right questions and picking up on the small details that could make all the difference to the situation. He could have a huge impact on their ultimate decision. However, Cloud had made it clear he did not want anyone else to know until he was ready and he would respect his husband's wishes.

He gave a slight nod and Leon stepped away. The older man bid the brothers farewell and left the kitchen. After the front door shut, Riku allowed himself a moment. He closed his eyes, exhaled slowly and willed his emotions to settle. Once he was calm again, he poured his glass of juice.

"Did you and Cloud talk any further yesterday?"

"No." Riku brought the glass to the table and took the seat Leon had vacated. "After Sora left the other night, I made it clear that I wouldn't leave him if he did terminate."

"Is that a true statement?"

Riku looked up sharply at his brother; Sephiroth was watching him closely. He wanted to lash out at him for asking such a question but he knew it was necessary. "It is. It will hurt a lot for a while if he does but, I couldn't hold it against him. I won't get over it just like that but… I would learn to accept it and move on."

Sephiroth studied him a moment further before turning his eyes back to the glass of water before him. "That should make the decision marginally easier for Cloud."

"I hope so."

The faint creaking of weight on the steps and the jangle of the dogs' collars drifted toward them. Seph and Zack appeared, heading straight for the backdoor. Sephiroth stood to let them out and as he reclosed the door, Cloud entered the kitchen. He was still in his sleep clothes and looked pale and exhausted.

Riku frowned at him, reaching over to rub Cloud's arm as he passed. "Feeling sick again?"

"A little," The blond mumbled, breaking away and shuffling to the pantry. As he opened it up, he grumbled, "I'm not hungry but I'm seriously craving something."

"Like what?"

"No clue."

Sephiroth snorted softly as he let the dogs back in. "Very helpful, Strife."

Cloud whirled on him, glaring. "What's that supposed to mean?"

An elegant eyebrow rose. "There was no hidden meaning unless you chose to find one which speaks more of your emotional state than anything."

After a beat, Cloud exhaled and turned back to the pantry. "I'm sorry."

Neither of the Jenova brothers responded.

Cloud ran his eyes quickly over what they had to eat and gave up. He closed the pantry and went to the table. Slumping into the chair next to Riku, he laid an arm on the table. "Maybe I'll see something on the way to the doctor. When is that, anyway?"

"Eleven." Riku took his hand and squeezed it. "And it's nine-thirty now."

"Ugh, too early." The blond whined. "Do we still have that decaf coffee we keep for Aerith?"

"I think so." Riku's mouth turned down in thought. He got up and went to the cabinet the coffee and tea were kept in. After a moment of searching, he paused. "Why do you want it? You hate the decaf stuff."

"Because pregnant people aren't supposed to have a lot of caffeine." Cloud answered patiently. "We should probably make a list of things we need to replace to more baby-friendly stuff."

Riku froze in place. Cloud could not mean what he was implying. He just meant for now, until he made up his mind.

Sephiroth's voice broke the silence that had formed. "You made your decision then?"

"Riku wants to have this baby, to have a family." Cloud spoke softly. "I have never denied Riku anything."

The younger silver-haired man slowly turned to face his husband. "Cloud, I don't want you to have this baby simply because I want it."

"I'm not." The blond smiled and his blue eyes were sincere. When he had woken up this morning, he had lain in bed and his thoughts kept drifting toward Riku. He knew that having this baby could prove to be the last thing that his lover needed to truly be free. By having something, someone, that was completely theirs and a family to love, Riku could become whole. "I want this baby for you."

Riku had no idea how to react. He was happy Cloud had decided to keep their child; worried that he really was only doing it for him; scared knowing that now that they were going forward with this, everything was going to change…. Now that Cloud had made up his mind, Riku was beginning to have doubts.

"May I suggest," Sephiroth interceded. "That before finalizing anything, you get all the details from the doctors as to how this pregnancy will likely progress. You don't even know how you will have to give birth."

Cloud paled a little and he scrunched up his faintly freckled face. Cloud worried his lower lip. He had not really thought about that part… or even the actual pregnancy in general. He was so focused on the aftermath, the baby itself, that he hadn't taken the time to consider what being pregnant was going to do to his body.

"Cameron said cesarean section." Riku shrugged. "What's one more scar?"

Riku studied his husband, recognizing that Cloud had not truly thought about the physical ramifications of his current state. He had no doubt that Cloud's body could tolerate the pregnancy, it had been through much more stressful circumstances, but the stresses of pregnancy would be different. It was likely to become increasingly difficult for him to function normally the further along he got.

Abruptly, Cloud slapped his hand on the table. "I know what I want."

It took Riku a beat to switch gears. "Uh... yeah?"

"Yeah. I want lox and cream cheese on a blueberry bagel."

"Okay…" Aqua eyes flicked toward Sephiroth. "I really didn't think the strange cravings started until a few more weeks in."

"He's a male dealing with female hormones. It's likely a majority of the standard events will be altered."

"It's gonna suck when he's all swollen up and I'm gonna have to make him all these weird concoctions."

"I'd be more concerned with the mood swings."

"Oh, I didn't even think of those!" He's gonna be a nightmare."

Cloud pouted angrily. "He is still in the room and can still change his mind."

"And it starts." Riku chuckled. Sobering up a little, he turned back to the cabinet. "I think we got rid of the decaf but if you get ready now we can stop at the bagel shop on the way to the healers."

Cloud stood and headed for the stairs.

-0—0—

Cloud ended up ordering three of the bagel sandwiches and ate them as they walked across town. Riku held his husband's decaf mocha along with his own chai tea and watched Cloud in concern and amusement. He was still uncertain about Cloud's real reason for keeping the baby but kept quiet. He would just keep an eye on him and if there was any sign of doubt or resentment, they would reopen the discussion of termination.

A few people said hello and were clearly glad to see the couple out and about. Word of Cloud's illness had spread and everyone hoped he was feeling better. He responded to these comments with neutral 'getting there's'.

Upon entering the medical office side of the healer's center, they discovered Demyx waiting in the lobby. Cloud noticeably stiffened at seeing him and Riku took a silent breath. This would either amount to nothing or Demyx was going to make a fuss to Reno about seeing them and things would end up getting exposed a lot sooner than they wanted.

Demyx spotted them and grinned happily. "Hey, guys! Cloud getting a check-up?"

"Yeah," Riku replied easily, Cloud continuing to the check-in counter. Deciding it was best to keep the topic off of Cloud, he casually asked, "Why are you here?"

"Oh." Demyx rubbed the back of his head and his expression became rather uncomfortable. "Well, Axel has to get… something done and is gonna be kinda woozy after so I'm here to walk him home since Sora's still working for Cloud."

"He finally getting those stupid tattoos removed?" Cloud muttered as he returned to the pair.

"The day he does that is the day Reno does."

"For two guys who dislike each other so much they have a hell of a lot in common. " Riku noted with a laugh.

"Which is why they don't get along." Demyx added, shaking his head. "I hate having to juggle my time with them."

"Yeah, I know that one." Riku took Cloud's hand and squeezed it gently. "You saw what I had to do with this one and my brother."

"Oh yeah, I remember." The former Nobody grinned. "At least I don't have to worry about them killing each other."

"Cloud?"

All three turned their heads toward the voice that called Cloud's name from the door leading to the back. Cameron's nurse, Bobbi, smiled lightly at them. She did not speak further but they knew she was calling them back.

"Hope everything checks out, Cloud." Demyx waved as the couple moved toward the woman.

"It should." Riku responded for both of them.

Bobbi nodded at them and took the lead, guiding them through the corridors to Cameron's section of the ward. "Doctor will come talk to you in a few minutes but I'm going to get your vitals and draw some blood first."

"I'm really getting stuck every two weeks now, aren't I?" Cloud grumbled as Bobbi motioned him and Riku into an exam room. He automatically got on the exam table and Riku stepped to the side and out of the way.

"Probably." The middle-aged redhead confirmed casually starting on Cloud's vital signs. "We're going to have to monitor the hormone levels very carefully."

Cloud fell quiet as she worked, idly watching her take his blood pressure before glancing at Riku. In the few hours since he had said he would keep the baby, Riku had relaxed significantly. That relieved the older man more than anything. He had meant what he had said, he did want to give Riku the family he wanted, and there was no uncertainty about it.

"Everything looks good." Bobbi declared, noting the chart. Setting that to the side, she removed a needle, syringe and three vials from her pocket. As she assembled the parts, she glanced at Cloud. "I hear your bad with needles."

She stepped closer and he held out his arm. "I'm worse with injections."

She tied a tourniquet on his arm and located a vein to draw from. "You may have to get used to those, too."

"I'm aware." The blond muttered darkly, turning his face toward Riku. "It's one of the reasons I almost said screw it to this whole thing."

Riku folded his arms. "If you had decided to abort our baby because you didn't want to get shots, I _would_ have left you. That would have been…"

"Beyond selfish." Cloud winced a touch as Bobbi's needle went in. "It's time I get over my fears."

Riku smiled brilliantly at him. This unforeseen and impossible pregnancy was having some very positive effects on Cloud. He prayed it would continue to do so and that when the baby was born, she would be the final step in making them both whole. Hopefully, she would be that last thing they needed to repair the remaining damage they both had.

Bobbi finished the draw and pressed a piece of gauze to the site. "So I'm assuming by your conversation that you plan to keep the baby?"

Cloud nodded. "Yeah, we are."

"Good." The nurse checked for further bleeding. Upon seeing nothing, she got rid of the used needle. "Dr. Cameron will be really glad to hear that."

Cloud did not care what the doctor wanted but didn't bother to voice that. Riku reached over and brushed his cheek. Blue eyes glanced at him and he knew Riku was of the same opinion.

"All right, let me get these going and the doctor will be in shortly." Bobbi informed them then slipped out.

Cloud fell back on the padded table and exhaled. "I already hate this place."

"We might be able to have some of these be home visits." The silver-haired half of the couple suggested. "If it's all just monitoring, I don't see why you'll need to always be coming here for it."

"I'd pay extra for that."

"I'd let you." Riku laughed. He stepped closer and gazed down. "Anything that will make this easier for you, I'll do."

Cloud smiled at him affectionately. "I know."

There was a knock on the door and Cloud sat back up as it opened. They expected Cameron to appear and were shocked and extremely unhappy to see a tattooed, red-haired male enter.

"Hey there, Spike." Reno drawled out, pushing the door closed behind him and strolling over to the counter. He hopped up on it and leaned forward, fingers laced together before him. "So I come here to find out where Demyx disappeared to and he tells me that you and the hubby were back here for a follow up with the sexy blond doctor lady which got my interest. I wondered why you had a follow up for a simple stomach bug."

Cloud paled and he _knew_ that Reno knew everything. There was no way the Turk came all the way back her to just check up on him. Reno had to have snuck a look at his chart.

Reno lifted his head and smirked. "But it's so much more than a little bug."

Riku also realized that Reno had learned everything and narrowed his eyes dangerously. "I swear, Reno, if you even think-"

"Whoa, yo." Reno held up his hands defensively. "I do have some discretion. This is not the kind of thing to take advantage of… unless you really don't like the guy who's knocked up. Or you can get a shitload of cash."

"Then why are you here?" Cloud ground out. This was not a good development. Reno was about the last person he wanted to find out about this. The only person who would be worse would be Yuffie.

"Well, I checked into it initially hoping to find something embarrassing like… I don't know, an STD or weird infection." The red-head chuckled and shook his head. "I totally was not expecting to find out you were knocked up. How the hell did that happen and why isn't it Riku?"

"It's a long story." Cloud idly rubbed at his abdomen.

"Look, Reno," Riku beseeched the Turk. "We'll explain what we can when we're ready but until then, I'm asking you to please, please keep your mouth shut about this."

Blue eyes flicked between the couple. It was obvious he was carefully considering something. Reno's expression suddenly softened. "You keeping it?"

Cloud met his eyes. "Yeah, we are."

"Huh." Reno slid off the countertop. "Well don't worry, my lips are sealed but if I were you, I wouldn't waste too much time telling everyone. You know that eventually Sora's gonna let something slip. Plus, you ain't gonna be able to hid Cloud's subconscious Mommy-actions."

"My what?"

Reno snorted loudly. "I'm sure Riku knows exactly what I'm talking about. See you both later, yo."

As soon as he was gone, Cloud glanced angrily at his lover. "What was he going on about?"

"Look at where your hand is." Riku advised quietly. He wanted Cloud to calm down and wasn't sure how he was going to react. When Cloud looked down, the younger one explained. "You've been doing a lot of idle rubbing where the baby is."

Cloud stared at his hand. He had been? His mind automatically searched back over the time since he found out he was pregnant. He had been doing that and now that he was thinking about it, he had spoken to the baby a few times, too. He had been subconsciously trying to bond.

Maybe he wanted this baby more than he allowed himself to believe… or the hormones were really getting to him.

Another tap echoed and this time it was Cameron who came in. She was nearly beaming as the door closed and she faced the couple. "Bobbi informed me that you decided to keep the baby."

"Yeah," whispered Cloud, removing his hand from his stomach. His sudden change in attitude disturbed Riku greatly. "So what do I need to do?"

"Well, as I said the other day, the key thing will be to watch the hormones to make sure they stay where they need to be throughout the pregnancy. Blood tests every three days will cover that. The other concern is space as the baby grows but we'll be able to track that through normal pre-natal check-ups."

"Are you going to stick to the normal schedule for those?"

"For now. I see no reason to do more at this point."

Riku worried his lower lip. "What happens if problems start developing?"

"We deal with them as they come up." Cameron shrugged. "Until it happens, we won't know how to treat it. Remember, this is new for us, too. All we can do is treat it was much like a normal pregnancy as possible and make alterations as necessary."

Riku cautiously rubbed at the back of Cloud's neck. He was still a bit removed but listening to Cameron. He had no idea what the older man was thinking.

"So what do I need to do? Just follow those instructions you gave me the other day?"

"Yep. Try to avoid stress but for now you can continue with your normal activities." Cameron reached into one of her lab coat pockets. "I hope you don't find this too presumptuous for me, but I had really hoped you would decide this and went ahead and bought these for you."

She handed a bottle to Cloud and explained. "I figured you weren't going to be ready to explain why you needed pre-natal vitamins yet. There's two months worth there and I can get you more if you want."

"I have a feeling we'll be public by then." Cloud read the bottle label over. He had thought he was okay with all of this, but now it was beginning to feel seriously real to him. It was… strange and unsettling.

"Probably."

He glanced up and managed a smile. "Thank you."

"No problem." The doctor returned. "Do either of you have any questions?"

They indicated no. They were sure there were going to be a lot over the next week but at this moment, there was nothing. At least, nothing that she could answer.

"All right then. We're running the blood now and we'll call to let you know the results of that. You know what you need to do so we're done for today."

"Good." Cloud got off the table.

"Come back this time next week, okay?"

"Got it." Cloud was already opening the door. He rushed out and both Riku and Cameron blinked.

Riku sighed and flicked his bangs. He didn't apologize for Cloud but gave the doctor a proper farewell before following Cloud. He wasn't surprised to see that he was already out of sight.

Cloud was in the lobby, waiting for the receipt for his payment. He did not look at Riku as the paper was handed to him. "Do you mind if I just go home? I don't think I'm up to the Marketplace."

"Oh." Riku spoke flatly. "Yeah, that's fine. I don't need to get much."

Cloud faced him. His blue eyes were apologetic and upset. "I'm sorry. I just need a little time to myself…"

"It's alright." Riku assured him even though he was not feeling the words. Cloud was withdrawn again and that wasn't good at this point. Even though it went against their normal routine, they need to keep communicating.

They walked out together and Cloud kissed his cheek. "I'll see you at home."

"Yeah."

Cloud headed off, moving quickly toward the neighborhood their house was in. Riku watched after him until he disappeared. He suppressed the swelling of anxiety and fear in his heart and stuffed his hands in his pockets. He left in the direction of the market and forced himself to not think.

These coming weeks were likely to be some of the hardest they both faced.

-0—0—

Thankfully, Riku had done a lot of the shopping for Tifa when she was pregnant and remembered most of the things she had eaten. There were a lot of green vegetables that he knew Cloud would dislike and as he picked them out, tried to think of ways he could sneak them into meals Cloud would eat. At least this was a problem he could find a solution for.

"Hey, Riku." Sora called from behind him. The brunet came up beside him. "How was the doctor?"

"Everything's fine." He replied, choosing some asparagus. "I just have to put together a new dinner menu for a while."

Sora's eyes widened. "So, he's…?"

"Yep."

"That's great, Ku!" Sora nearly jumped him. "I'm really happy for you guys!"

"I'll be excited when I know he's really okay about it."

Sora calmed down and frowned a little. "You think he's not serious?"

"Oh, I know he is." Riku paid for the vegetables and moved to the next stand which was mostly beans and lentils. "I'm just concerned with his motivation."

"It'll be okay, Riku." Sora assured him. "Both of you are going to have to work a lot of stuff out but I know in my heart that in the end, the three of you are going to be really happy."

Sora's confidence did a lot to improve Riku's mood. "I hope so. I think we can be."

"Me, too." Sora watched Riku pick out several varieties of beans. "I still don't get how Cloud likes those."

"I know." The older one laughed. "But he doesn't get how we can like seaweed."

"True."

Riku finished making his selections and paid for the beans. "I think I'm done… I should get more hot sauce."

"Cloud hates hot sauce."

"Yeah, but apparently she loves it."

"She?" Sora frowned in confusion. "Oh! You mean-"

"Yeah." Riku cut him off before he could say anything revealing. There were too many people around to overhear their conversation already.

"Heh, that's kinda cool. I wonder what other changes we're gonna see."

Riku had to admit he was interested to see that, too. He was looking forward to all of the little changes that were to come. "I better get home."

"Cloud going to need me to cover him again tomorrow?"

"I'm not sure." Riku hefted his bags. "I'll call you tonight about it."

"Got it. I guess I should make sure Axel's okay."

Riku glanced over. "Just what did he have done?"

"Heh," Sora grinned widely. "You don't want to know."

Riku lifted an eyebrow but didn't push for more information. If it was as amusing as it was sounding, he'd know about it soon enough. "Have fun with that."

"Oh, yeah." Sora waved and walked off.

Riku waited a moment further then made his own way home.


	7. Chapter 7

A bit shorter than the last one. Next chapter: the truth begins to come out. Review, please?

* * *

Cloud entered the house and quietly shut the door. The dogs did not come to greet him so they were either outside or upstairs with Sephiroth. He really wanted a stiff drink but since that was not possible, he was going to have to settle for a very large sweet tea. He was so glad that Riku had learned how to make it properly. Maybe he'd see if there were any of the brownies Sephiroth had made the other day left.

He went to the kitchen and searched the fridge. The sweet tea was nearly gone but there was enough for a good sized glass. He left the empty pitcher on the counter, hopefully Riku would see if right away and make more this afternoon, and sought out what remained of the brownies.

"If you're looking for the brownies," the winged man himself spoke from the entry. "The last one is wrapped and in the cookie jar."

Cloud immediately retrieved it. "Are the dogs outside?"

"Yes. I was coming to let them back in."

The younger man glanced out the back door window. The dogs were still running around and didn't seem interested at all in coming back in yet. He unwrapped the brownie and bit into it as Sephiroth crossed the room and took a glass from the cabinet. "I'd give them a few more minutes."

"Where's Riku?"

Cloud watched him fill the glass with water. "He stopped in the market to pick up some things."

"Ah."

The two fell silent as Cloud finished off the brownie. He tossed the wrapper in the trash and got his sweet tea. Lounging on the sofa with a movie sounded like a really good idea. There were a few that he had been meaning to watch.

"Cloud."

The blond took a very long drink, flicking his eyes over.

Sephiroth gazed at him evenly. "This baby is a lifetime commitment. Want it for yourself, not Riku."

Cloud studied him for a moment then nodded. He knew Sephiroth would eventually say something. Thankfully this would also be likely all he said on the matter.

Suddenly curious, the shorter man canted his head. "Are you okay with all of this? I mean, this does affect you, too."

Sephiroth did not reply immediately. He casually went to the back door and let the dogs in. When he shut the door after them, he faced his brother-in-law. "I accept anything that you and Riku choose. While I could come to enjoy having a niece, I will live my life just as well without."

Cloud pursed his lips. "You and Riku keep referring to it as a girl."

"We do, don't we?" The former general noted idly. "Humph, interesting."

Knowing that Sephiroth was not going to say anything more about it, Cloud took another drink of his tea and moved to the kitchen entrance. "Did you want to see that movie Zack brought over? I'm going to watch it now."

"I'll be there after I refill my water."

--0—0—

When Riku entered the house, he blinked at the sight in the living room. Cloud was curled up on the sofa, a throw over his legs and laughing like an idiot. Sephiroth sat casually next to him, smiling at whatever they were watching. The dogs were lying at his bare-feet.

They looked comfortable; a happy little family.

He pushed back the unreasonable flare of jealousy that rose up. He knew he was being stupid; there was absolutely nothing beyond a familiar bond between the two. Cloud was willing to have a baby for Riku which spoke volumes of how devoted he was to him. So what if Cloud seemed to be having an easier time talking to Sephiroth? So what if the blond was able to confide to Sephiroth things he couldn't with Riku?

Riku had that kind of relationship with Sora. He and his best friend understood each other in ways that no one else could. There were things they could only tell each other and other things they couldn't tell the other and often didn't have to. It was ridiculous for him to get worked up over his husband having a similar relationship with Sephiroth; especially considering how much effort had gone into getting Cloud and Sephiroth even sociable with one another.

Cloud glanced over and smiled. "How was the market?"

"Not bad. I found everything I wanted."

"Good." Cloud turned back to the television.

"Yeah." Riku changed his grip on the tote bag he held. "Sora said to call if you need him to cover for you again tomorrow."

The blue-eyed man made a face before sighing. "No, I can work. I've taken enough time off."

"You'll be taking a lot off later," Sephiroth murmured. "You'll need at least six months maternity leave and that's if you work up until you're last month of pregnancy."

"Which he isn't." Riku decided. He turned back into the hall. "He's not working after the second trimester."

Cloud watched him disappear and frowned. "Why do I have the feeling he's going to be paranoid and over-protective the entire pregnancy?"

"Because he's concerned you won't be and is over-compensating." Sephiroth concluded simply.

"He's an idiot then." Cloud ran a hand idly along his lower abdomen. "There is no way in hell I'm going to let anything happen to this child."

He felt Sephiroth's eyes on him and lifted an eyebrow. From the corner of his eye, he saw a small smile tug at his brother-in-law's lips as he placed his attention back on the film. Not sure what that was about, Cloud did likewise.

--0—0—

Riku joined them again a half-hour later. Both Cloud and Sephiroth moved to give him more space between them and Cloud pulled his lover close, keeping an arm around his shoulders and toying with the back of Riku's neck. The movie was nearly finished and Riku had no idea what was going on but didn't much care. It was not a movie he had any interest in.

It was relaxing to just be sitting here, doing nothing important and not thinking about anything. It felt like the past few days had never happened. Riku was not sure if it was a good thing to be happy about that but hoped it was simply because they needed a moment away from the situation he and Cloud were in.

The credits came up and Cloud rolled his shoulders, still chuckling. "Zack was right about that movie."

"It was amusing." Sephiroth agreed, standing with his empty water glass. His canine namesake lifted his head to watch him move but soon dropped it back down. Zack didn't even wake up as the winged man stepped over him. "Do either of you have plans for the rest of the day?"

Cloud shook his head. "All I want to do is relax and watch movies all day. Maybe get pizza for dinner."

"I'm for that." Riku put in.

"I'll leave you two to it then." Sephiroth walked toward the room entrance. "I'm going to train for a few hours. I'll be back later this evening"

Riku shook his head as his brother disappeared. "He worries too damn much about us."

"Yeah, he does." Cloud took up his half-finished tea as Riku rubbed his thigh and got up. "Did you make more tea?"

Chuckling, Riku removed the DVD from the player. "Yes, it's brewing now. What movie do you want next?"

"Something that I haven't seen and isn't too sappy."

"Got it." Riku selected a new movie and put it in. As it loaded, he returned to the sofa and settled down beside his husband. Casually, he placed his hand over the section of Cloud's belly were their child grew.

Cloud flicked his eyes down but said nothing and started the DVD.

--0—0—

They ordered their pizza at the end of the second movie. Riku only raised an eyebrow at Cloud's decision to add jalapeños to half of it and smirked when the blond muttered a curse upon his stomach after hanging up. Thankfully, Cloud did not see it and they started up the third movie. When the pizza did arrive, Cloud went to the kitchen and brought back the hot sauce.

"I am so glad I bought two more bottles of that stuff."

Cloud made a noise as he dropped back onto the sofa. "I still hate this shit."

"I know you do."

"Do we need to call Sora?" The older man removed a pizza slice and began dumping hot sauce on it.

"He said to call if you needed him to work." Riku moved and pulled out his phone. "I'll text him though. You sure you're up to working?"

"Yeah. Doctor said it was okay for now and we'll need the money later." Cloud paused in his chewing. "They haven't called yet."

Riku heard the underlying concern in Cloud's tone. "It's not that late yet. We'll give them another hour."

As it was, Aerith called Cloud twenty minutes later to inform him that everything was normal, at least as normal as the situation could be. She was obviously happy that he was keeping the baby and assured him that she would help in every way possible during and after the pregnancy. He simply thanked her and quickly ended the call.

Tossing the phone on the coffee table, he threw his head back. "I've decided what the worst part of this is."

"Not the hot sauce cravings?" Riku joked. He really wanted to keep the mood light and could tell Cloud could easily fall into a depressive fit at this time.

"No, though it's a close second." Cloud stated flatly. "It's all the attention I'm going to be getting. Everyone is going to be watching me and offering help, even when I clearly don't need or want it. I'm going to be frustrated all the time."

Riku reached over and fit his hand along the back of Cloud's neck and started rubbing. The muscles were rather tight, indicating how concerned his lover was about this. "I'll keep them off of you. You know Aerith is just a mother hen with all of us. Tifa, Zack, and Leon will leave you alone unless you start pushing yourself too much."

"And what about you?" Murmured Cloud, head falling forward as he slowly relaxed again. "I'm more worried about you hovering."

Riku moistened his lower lip, knowing that he had already started doing some of that. "I promise to do my best not to. I trust you to do what's best for you and the baby."

"Good." Cloud breathed out as Riku's fingers moved to the base of his neck. "Did you get any ice cream?"

"No, but I can order some from Scrooge in the morning. It would be ready by the time we're going home. Still craving sea-salt?"

"Yeah," the swordsman grumbled. His eyes fixed upon the raise in his stomach. "Little brat's already pushing me around."

Riku grinned but did not say what he wanted to. Cloud was already showing signs of being a total push over for the baby. As much as he complained, he wasn't doing anything to fight the cravings.

The blond leaned forward and took the last drink of his sweet tea. Setting the empty glass back down, he twisted his body to face Riku. There was a glint to his eyes that the silvered one recognized instantly. "I'm bored with movies."

Riku brought a finger up to trace Cloud's jaw. "Then what do you want to do?"

Cloud grinned and carefully straddled Riku's thighs. "I have a few ideas."

Placing his hands on Cloud's hips, Riku arched an eyebrow. "Such as?"

Pressing their chests together, Cloud began nibbling at the younger man's ear. His hands came up to run over his shoulders. He rolled his hips against Riku's and breathed in his ear. "Do you realize it's been over a week?"

Riku slipped his fingers beneath Cloud's shirt. "For me it's been over a week. You had a fantastic hand job two days ago or did you forget?"

"No…" Cloud replied slowly. He ran his tongue along Riku's earlobe. "But that isn't the same."

The younger one shuddered slightly, fingertips pressing into Cloud's skin. It had been a very long time since they had done this and he was reacting quite strongly. It wasn't often that they went more than three days without sex. "I suppose not…"

Cloud removed his tongue from Riku's ear so that he could bring his lips upon his husbands. They kissed deeply for several minutes, shirts getting pushed up so that both sets of hands could glide over skin. There was a subtle desperation to their actions that neither was certain the reason behind.

Breaking away, Cloud quickly pulled off Riku's shirt, grinding his hips down as he did. This earned him a low moan from the other, which he silenced with another needy, intense kiss. He let his hands wander over as much of Riku's body as he could reach.

Riku dug his nails into Cloud's shoulder blades, shifting beneath the swordsman in response to his movements. He could feel Cloud's erection and was positive it was not going to take much again for him to reach orgasm. He had to wonder if this was going to become the normal while the other man was pregnant. If it was, he hoped he could adjust and finish rather quickly also. Cloud had been exhausted after just the hand job.

"Come on," Cloud murmured against his lips, slowly climbing off of him and tugging him off the sofa. Riku followed him to the stairs, the dogs remaining on the living room floor. The canines had learned long ago when to leave their owners alone.

Cloud led Riku into their bedroom, kicking the door shut behind them. The last thing they needed was for Sephiroth to come back and catch them again. That had been a very mortifying experience he did not care to repeat.

He turned toward his lover and stalked forward, blue eyes hazed over with lust. As soon as he reached Riku, he began undoing his belt and divesting him of the rest of his clothes. Riku worked to do the same for him but only got as far as removing Cloud's pants by the time Cloud finished with him. Once Riku was naked, the blond not-so-gently shoved Riku to the bed.

Riku ended up with his butt on the edge of the mattress and before he could move back, Cloud was on his knees before him. He pushed Riku's legs apart, took hold of the base of his penis and proceeded to wrap his mouth around the head of it. All Riku could do was grip the sheets, throw his head back and groan loudly.

Cloud smiled a touch as he took more of Riku into his mouth. Every sound the silver-haired man made cause his own cock to twitch and he really wanted to just take Riku hard and fast but he waited. He knew his body and he was likely to cum very soon into the actual intercourse. He wanted to draw this out some and knew that Riku was quick to recover from orgasms. He would take care of his lover first and then take him, certain that Riku would reach climax again from it… That wonderful tightness of his pressing in on his own…

He deep throated Riku and the young man cried out, fighting to keep from bucking up and choking Cloud. His orgasm had slammed into him suddenly and he made a foggy mental note to use this position again for fellatio. There was an intensity to it that made the sensations nearly twice as strong.

He was given a minute to calm down and watched as Cloud slowly stood, leaning forward to kiss Riku sensually. He could taste himself on Cloud's lips which had long ago proven to be a very strange turn on. Already he could begin to feel himself stirring again. That had to be Cloud's plan.

Cloud stepped back and removed the boxers that Riku had not gotten to. As he did, Riku slid up further on the bed, reaching into the nightstand for some lube. Once he was lying back again, he locked eyes with Cloud as he opened his legs further and idly poured the lube on his fingers and started preparing himself. He knew it drove Cloud crazy watching him do this.

The older male came to the bedside and pulled over the pillow they had designated for sex use. They had found both lasted longer and the experience was more satisfying if the middle of Riku's back was propped up a bit. Riku was moaning and shifting as he fingered himself and Cloud climbed on the mattress in front of him, his hardened flesh weeping and demanding to be sheathed inside Riku's body.

With a wanton noise, Riku removed his fingers from himself and lifted up his back. Cloud leaned over him to slide the pillow beneath him, pausing long enough to aggressively kiss the other's hot mouth before getting the pillow in place. The moment that was accomplished, Riku reached down and gave the blond's erection a few enticing pulls with his moist fingers. "Need you… now."

Cloud groaned headily and wasted no more time. He got up close and with only a noise as warning, fully inserted himself into his husband's body. A deep moan erupted from him as that incredible feeling engulfed his penis and he allowed himself a beat to savor it.

Then he began moving, thrusting in and out at a quickly building pace. He gripped at Riku's thighs, keeping him in place as he pushed in and pulled out at an ever increasing speed, needing more, wanting more. One of Riku's legs wrapped around his waist, bringing him closer and changing the angle enough to get Riku nearly hollering as he panted. Cloud just kept moving faster and harder, waiting…

Riku gripped the sheet with one hand and the other wrapped around his shaft, sliding along it in time with Cloud's trusts. His g-spot was being hit _just right_ now and he would not be able to hold out much longer. He met Cloud's eyes again and there was such intensity, such raw and carnal desire and need-

Riku's body tightened around him as his second orgasm slammed into him. He arched up wonderfully and the movement along with the closure of muscles sent Cloud flying into his own orgasm. The pleasure rippled through him in waves, intense and powerful and taking several moments to weaken. It was very rare that he had a rolling orgasm and he rode it out for as long as possible.

When he couldn't stay up anymore, Cloud pulled out of Riku and collapsed onto one of his legs. The one that had been wrapped around him relaxed and lay limply over him. He was exhausted and thoroughly satisfied.

Riku's voice was breathless as he reached down and rubbed at Cloud's soft spikes of hair. "You good?"

Cloud did not move. "I think I'm going to love pregnant sex."

The silvered one chuckled. "Yeah, me too."

"I need to move, don't I?"

"At least lift your head so I can."

Cloud groaned tiredly as he managed to raise his head enough for Riku to slip his leg out from under it. Riku had a compulsive need to clean up after sex and Cloud was finding it really annoying right now. He simply wanted to lay with his husband in his arms and go to sleep. Brooding, he watched Riku get up and head for the bathroom.

Riku was a lot faster about cleaning up than he usually was. He had noted the upset look Cloud had gotten and hurried to return to bed. He just really hated feeling semen drying on his legs and waking up to the sticky stuff was worse.

When he came back to the bed, Cloud had managed to get himself up and under the covers. He looked extremely tired but content and smiled softly at Riku. "That was fast."

"Yeah." Riku slid into bed and snuggled up beside the man he loved more than anything in the worlds. Cloud draped his arm around his shoulders and kissed his temple. "I didn't want you to miss me too much."

"Why would I miss you? I got sex, I'm good."

Riku lightly smacked his chest. He settled into Cloud's side and moved his hand down to the blond's lower abdomen. He could feel the life radiating from the spot and smiled. Even though everything was still uncertain, he felt something now that he had never truly felt before; he felt complete.

Cloud felt the peace that settled over Riku and though it made him uneasy, he was happy for it. He had hoped that keeping this baby would help his lover finally become whole and it appeared that was exactly what was happening. That settled in his mind that he had made the right decision; he would just have to come to his own terms with it by the time the child was born.

"Good night, love."

"Night, Riku."


	8. Chapter 8

Cloud's phone ringing woke him from a strange dream about elephants and Nutella. He shifted against the mattress, pulling away from Riku's loose embrace to reach over and answer the call. Two weeks had passed since he had learned the impossible news that he was pregnant and in that time, very little had actually changed.

They still had not told anyone.

His hand finally fell upon his phone on the nightstand. He hit the receive button as he brought it to his ear and mumbled a hello. He would decide once he knew who it was if he was going to kill them for calling on a rare Friday off.

"Hi, Cloud." Aerith's light voice was slightly apologetic. "It's nine-thirty and they need you to come in earlier today for your lab work."

Grumbling, Cloud rolled onto his back. "When?"

"Ten-thirty."

"Fine."

She said a quick good-bye and he disconnected the call. Flicking the phone to skitter across the nightstand, Cloud turned on his side and attempted to go back to sleep. He had another half hour before he had to leave for the healers.

"Who was that?"

"The vamps need my blood early today."

"Ah." Riku scooted closer and draped his arm around the shorter man's waist. His hand automatically went to Cloud's lower abdomen. "She's gotten bigger."

"I noticed," the blond whispered, giving up on sleep. In the past couple of weeks, the lump in his abdomen had spread out a few more inches and had risen up about a quarter of an inch more. It still was not enough to be noticeable to someone who didn't know about his condition but he had taken to wearing his more loose shirts to be on the safe side.

So far, it appeared that the baby's growth was going to be normal which meant he wouldn't have a notable baby bump for another month or two. It would simply look like he was gaining weight which he was fine with. Tifa had been complaining for years that he was too thin anyway.

Riku kissed his shoulder. "Want me to make some eggs in a baskey?"

That sounded really good. The morning sickness had for the most part passed last week; he only had the occasional bout of nausea and random swooning episode. Sadly, he still had the hot sauce and sea-salt ice cream cravings but those were tolerable. "Yeah. If you want, I'll make dinner tonight. You've been cooking and doing everything for two weeks now."

"I don't mind." The silvered one got out of bed and slipped on a pair of jeans. He found a shirt and pulled it on. "But if you want to I won't complain. Country fried steak sounds good."

Cloud sat up and rolled his shoulders. "I can do that with some potatoes and gravy."

"Kay." Riku smiled at him and left the bedroom.

Running a hand through his more disheveled than normal hair, Cloud reluctantly left the comfort of the sheets. He twisted his waist and felt a pull that was rather uncomfortable. Glancing down at the area it came from, he frowned deeply. Apparently the implantation site did not want him moving that way.

He had a moment of concern that he had inadvertently done something that would harm the baby. What if he just detached part of the placenta? What if he tore the embryonic sac? What if he had just killed the baby?

He took a breath and calmed himself down. If he had done any damage, he was certain that he'd be in more pain. Outside of that single pulling sensation, there was absolutely nothing. He felt exactly as he did before it happened.

The baby was okay; she had to be.

"Cloud?" Riku's voice drifted upstairs.

The blond went to the closet to find clothes. "I'll be down in a minute."

-0—0—

Cloud sipped at the bottle of orange juice the lab tech had given him after collecting the day's two veils of blood. They always made him drink orange juice after blood draws, which he didn't understand but didn't really care about either. It probably had something to do with vitamins and blood sugar levels.

Riku had immediately left after to help Axel put the final touches on his proposed structure for an active fire department. Apparently, Leon and Rufus had decided that all of Axel's proposals and reports were to be reviewed by an established member of the committee; supposedly it was to keep from wasting their time with any potential idiocy the former Nobody might sneak in. While Riku, or Cloud for that matter, were never actually in any way officially part of the restoration and now government of Radiant Garden, both had been involved enough to be counted.

Now Cloud was on his way to pick up the latest order of sea-salt ice cream. Since it was not an overly popular flavor, Scrooge only made it on special order or for specific events in town. At first Cloud had been concerned about someone noticing Riku and his sudden increase in orders but nothing had been said so far. Of course, it was usually Riku who ordered and picked it up so Cloud could easily just not know if anything was being said.

"Hey, Cloud!" Sora greeted brightly as he stepped out of the Moogle shop. The spiky brunet fell into step beside Cloud. "How's everything going?"

"It's fine." Cloud murmured, flicking his eyes at the young man. Sora had been amazingly supportive since he had been told about Cloud's delicate condition. He picked up Cloud's slack when there were issues and covered for him when he had his appointments. Cloud was extremely grateful to the Keyblade Master for all of his help.

"Good. Reno asked how you were last night when I saw him and Demyx." Sora frowned. "He gave me a kinda weird look, too. It was like he was trying to hint at something…"

Cloud paused for a moment. He was still extremely unhappy that the Turk knew about the pregnancy. Reno had given his word that he wouldn't say anything and so far had been true to his word, the fact that Sora didn't know he knew attested to that, but there were no guarantees how long that would last.

"So you going to Scrooge's?" Sora asked as they resumed walking. "Riku and I have been taking turns picking up your ice cream to keep suspicion down."

That was one mystery solved. "Thanks."

"Aw, no biggie." They made the turn to the ice cream shop. "Scrooge doesn't even bat an eye at me anymore when I ask for strange things. I told him that cookie dough ice cream would be huge and he didn't believe me. Now it's his best seller! Of course, Sephiroth buys a lot of it but either way."

There was a line at the shop and Cloud sighed in mild exasperation. He hated lines normally and loathed the idea of standing here surrounded by people. Maybe he would come back later; he did not need the frozen treat that bad… He saw Sora disappear through the back door and raised an eyebrow.

A minute later, the brunet re-emerged with two cartons of ice cream. He motioned with his head for Cloud to get out of line and when Cloud joined him, they began the walk back through the marketplace and toward the neighborhood Cloud and Riku lived in. "They're going to be closed for a few days because Scrooge and the nephews are going to visit Donald and Daisy."

Cloud nodded; that was why Sora had two cartons. He had picked up an extra so Cloud wouldn't run out. He felt wave of gratitude toward Sora again.

"Cloud!"

He turned his head to the right. Sitting outside the noodle shop were Leon and Irvine. Irvine had been the one to call out. The honey-brunet grinned at him as he and Sora came over. "Good to see you out an' about. No one's really seen you unless you're workin'."

Cloud gave him a slight shrug.

"Aw, he's just been kinda anti-social lately." Sora laughed. "After several days of being asked how you're feeling, I'd be avoiding people, too."

"Well, I ain't gonna ask." Irvine leaned back in the metal chair. "But you look healthier than you did. Whatever you've been having done at the healers every week is workin' for ya."

Cloud felt his body go stiff. He had hoped that no one was noticing his frequent visits to the healers but apparently they were. If Irvine had noted it, then it was a guarantee that Leon, Zack, Tifa and Aerith had also. A covert glance at Leon told him that while Leon had left him alone about it up until now, that would not be lasting.

This meant that he and Riku really could not avoid telling their friends the truth for much longer. Questions would soon be asked and by people they simply could not lie to. Even if they evaded giving honest answers, their extended family was not stupid by any means and would call them on it. Then there would be a confrontation.

…Cloud wanted the truth to come out under his terms.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine," muttered Cloud, wondering at Irvine's frown. He felt Sora subtly nudge him and flicking his eyes over, the young man indicated to look down. When he did, he inwardly sighed and moved his hand from his abdomen. "Just a…twinge."

Sora suddenly hefted the ice cream he held. "This stuff is gonna melt if we don't get it home."

Cloud sent the brunet another silent thank you for providing an exit for this conversation. However, Cloud knew that this was not the end of it. They were only delaying the inevitable and the sooner he began telling the truth, the less issue there was going to be later.

Worrying his lower lip, Cloud glanced at Leon. "You and Zack should stop by tonight."

"….." Leon's steel-colored eyes were curious and mildly concerned. "Sure. We'll come by after dinner."

Nodding, Cloud began walking away. Sora hesitated and the swordsman knew he was looking after him. After a beat, Sora hurried to catch up with him. Neither one spoke the rest of the way home.

At the end of the walk, Sora handed him the ice cream. He smiled assuringly at Cloud and the older man had the feeling that Sora knew why he had asked Leon and Zack to come over. "If you and Riku need anything, call."

"Thanks, Sora."

The young male waved and jogged off. Cloud turned up the walk and went inside. The dogs greeted him as he closed the front door, telling him that Riku was still gone. The stillness of the building indicated that Sephiroth was out also.

He put the ice cream in the freezer and got a glass of water before heading into his office. Sitting at his desk, he began catching up on his paperwork. He did not want to think about what he was going to do tonight until Riku came home and they decided together what they were going to say.

-0—0—

"Cloud?" Riku called as he shut the door. The dogs had not come running so someone was home and Sephiroth had said this morning he was going to be gone for the night. It had been completely pointless for Riku to check over Axel's proposal; the redhead liked to cause trouble but wasn't an idiot by any means. Most of Riku's time had been spent trying to find out what Axel had gotten done at the healers two weeks ago.

"In the office."

Riku traversed the hall and rounded into the combination office and study. He paused inside the doorway and observed his husband for a moment. Cloud was sitting at his desk, completing order requisitions, and he appeared to have been doing it for some time now. He was slouched forward, his shoulders tense and expression a mix of concentration and concern.

Coming further into the room, Riku frowned. "What happened?"

Cloud set his pen down and leaned back. His neck angled backward so that his head rested on the top of the chair as he breathed out slowly. "I told Leon and Zack to come over tonight."

Riku froze, understanding what his husband was not directly saying. "You did."

"People are starting to notice things and I know that Leon at least knows something is up. I don't want this to become some big deal revelation and to create any drama; I want to be the one to tell the people who need to know. I want to decide who knows and how to tell them."

As he listened, Riku became increasingly troubled. Everything was about what Cloud wanted; his desires, his opinion, his decision. His and his alone, as if Riku had no say in any of this. Maybe he did not; Cloud was the one who was pregnant, after all. In the end, Riku really did have little to do with the pregnancy itself.

Turning his face down, Riku worried his lower lip. "Whatever you want, Cloud."

Cloud turned his head toward Riku, hearing the painfully sad tone of his voice. He had thought that Riku would be happy about his decision. He knew that his lover wanted to tell their loved ones they were going to have a child. Why was he acting so… Oh.

Holding out a hand to Riku, Cloud modified his earlier statement. "You have a say in this, too. I didn't mean to sound selfish."

The younger half of the couple nodded.

"Come here." The blond prompted. When Riku complied, he took hold of his waist and pulled him to him. "You're as much a part of this as I am, Riku. I haven't forgotten who our baby's father is."

Aqua eyes gazed down and a tiny smile tugged at Riku's mouth. "Do you have any idea how weird it is to hear that?"

"Not as weird as it is to realize I'm this kid's mother," answered Cloud dryly. "We both have some serious adjusting to do."

"I think we should go into therapy."

"I think our friends will have that covered."

Riku couldn't argue that point. He ran his fingers through Cloud's soft spikes. Softly, he asked, "How are we going to do this, Cloud?"

"The same way we do everything." Cloud stood and slipped his arms around his tall husband's waist. "Tell ourselves to get over it and just do it."

Laughing, Riku pressed his lips to the other's forehead. He was nervous as hell about this evening and he knew Cloud was also but they had to do it. They had chosen to keep their baby and it was time to start spreading the news.

"I'm gonna start fixin' dinner."

Riku pulled away but did not release Cloud's hand as they left the office. "I'll help you. I'm still trying to figure out how you get those potatoes to taste so damn good."

"It's a country boy thing."

-0—0—

They were nearly finished cleaning up from dinner when the front door opened. "Hey, Spike! Where you at?"

Cloud glanced at Riku and was certain they had the same nervous expressions. "We're in the kitchen."

A moment passed before Zack and Leon entered the room. Zack was grinning but Cloud immediately saw the curiosity and concern in his violet eyes. Leon's attitude was casual and the couple took up positions near the table.

Zack looked at Riku and his jaw dropped when he saw what he was putting in the fridge. "You made your mom's fried steak and didn't invite us to dinner? I'm hurt, Cloud. You know how much I love it!"

"You can take what's left home," murmured Cloud, setting the frying pan into the drying rack.

"Awesome." Zack's tone abruptly changed and the concern overshadowed the curiosity in his eyes. "So, what's up, Cloud? Are you really okay cause you still seem a little off and both Leon and Tifa noticed that you keep going to the healers and I know Aerith's hiding something which she only does for you."

Cloud flicked his eyes toward Riku. The young man met his gaze briefly before glancing at the other couple. "Cloud's fine… well, healthy…"

"We need to tell you all something." Cloud studied the tile floor. He had no idea how he was going to say this.

Riku stepped closer and took his hand. Quietly, he suggested, "Let's do this in the living room. We may want to sit for this."

The Strifes both noticed the glances Leon and Zack gave one another and their nervousness increased. Neither had a clue how the other two were going to react to the news they were about to give. Regardless, they were going to have to tell them and hope they believed them without too much questioning.

Leon took the lead out of the kitchen, followed immediately by Zack. Still holding hands, Riku and Cloud followed. As they entered the main room of the house, Zack was settling on the floor and petting the dogs while Leon picked a spot near the entertainment center and casually stood.

Riku gently pulled Cloud with him to the sofa and sat down. Cloud placed himself beside him and swallowed thickly. Riku squeezed his hand and placed his attention upon him. His eyes silently asked if he wanted Riku to explain.

Taking a shallow breath, Cloud knew there was no easy way to do this and he needed to be the one to say it. It was the only way that Zack and Leon would not automatically assume it was some kind of joke. They were more likely to take it seriously if it was him. "This is going to sound insane and completely impossible but… apparently I'm pregnant."

Neither Leon nor Zack reacted. The pair simply looked at him with incomprehension. An un-measurable span of time passed before Leon shifted but remained silent. Zack blinked a few times.

Then together they asked, "What?"

For some reason, it was easier for Cloud to repeat the statement. "I'm pregnant."

Another span of silence.

Abruptly, Zack laughed manically. "That Jenova jizz must be something fierce."

"That's not how…" Riku reflexively began to defend himself.

"Now I'm glad I never got a chance with Sephiroth."

"I didn't do it!" Riku flushed. "Well… I did but it wasn't because…"

The moment passed and Leon folded his arms. "You're serious about this."

"Yes." Cloud confirmed. "Sephiroth, Sora, Aerith and Reno already know."

"Reno knows?" Zack started." You told Reno before us?"

"He found out by accident a few days after I was released from observation."

"Oh." Zack slumped for a second then jumped onto his knees and pointed at Cloud. "So, wait, you're really knocked up?"

Cloud placed his free hand on his belly. "Yeah."

"That's, that's…" The First Class sputtered, falling back on his butt. "Really messed up, Cloud."

"Tell me about it."

Leon was studying the Strifes analytically. It was difficult to tell what he was thinking or what he was going to say about this. Both Riku and Cloud were more concerned with his reaction than anyone else.

Very casually, Leon stated, "And this is why we don't let Riku top."

"I already forbade him from doing it again." Cloud spoke in the exact same tone.

"Wow, guys." Breathed out Zack, his brain clearly trying to wrap itself around what had just been told. "Uh… congrats?"

"How did this happen?" Leon asked.

Cloud glanced at Riku to explain. He really did not want to sort through it all again and it was embarrassing enough to just tell them he was with child. It was not that he was ashamed or anything like that; it was just…well, awkward.

"Long story short," said Riku. "Hades has been stewing on his vengeance and finally decided to modify a Greek god pregnancy spell which reversed Cloud's reproductive physiology to a female orientation along with a few other charges that allowed for him to become pregnant."

"Why does everyone assume you top?" Zack shook his head. "I knew the minute I saw you, you were uke as hell."

"We all know that he gets in moods and I don't know many gay couples that are one or the other all the time," murmured Leon. "Even if Hades was wrong, which he was, eventually it would work. I hate to admit it, but it's a brilliant plan. Hades could have exacted his revenge on several levels."

"Yeah," Cloud agreed.

"So…" Zack drew out the word. "Are you keeping it? Actually, can you even keep it?

Cloud glanced again at Riku. "We decided to keep the baby. Dr. Cameron doesn't see any reason I can't carry to term. I get my hormone levels checked every three days and there should be enough room for the baby to grow where it's at."

"When she's ready, Cloud will simply have a c-section." Riku finished, smiling lightly. "Hades revenge has become a gift."

A muscle in Cloud's jaw twitched. He did not know about the gift part but if that's how Riku saw it then that was okay. Cloud would have been just fine with his life if he had never gotten pregnant. Now that he was, he was determined to take the necessary steps to keep it healthy and he would love the baby and care for it with everything he could give but it would not have bothered him if it never had happened. Having a child was never one of his top priorities; he was doing this for Riku.

"Can I see it?" Zack suddenly asked.

"What?"

The raven-haired man grinned. "I wanna see where my future niece or nephew is growing."

Sighing, Cloud lifted his shirt and repositioned himself so that it was easier to see the swelling in his abdomen. Zack's eyes widened and he crawled over on his knees. Upon getting close enough, he reached out and gently touched the area.

"Oh, that's weird, Spiky. And the doc thinks there's enough room there? I mean, Tifa got huge."

"Tifa had twins, which I guarantee I'm not."

Leon was examining the spot where Zack's hand was from his spot near the TV. "How far along are you?"

"Ten weeks." Riku replied for his husband. "They gave us a folder with information about the baby's development and the changes we might see in Cloud. So far everything's been on target with the baby. Some of Cloud's symptoms are showing up early but that's kinda to be expected."

"Is that the reason for all the sea-salt ice cream?" Leon smirked. "You and Sora did a good job trying to hide it but I saw how many cartons you were ordering."

"He's also addicted to hot sauce now."

"I'm not addicted!" Cloud softly shouted in exasperation. He motioned to his stomach. "Your kid here keeps demanding it."

"And you give it to her."

"She makes my life hell if I don't."

Zack snorted a laugh and leaned back. "Oh, the next seven months are gonna be fun."

"They're going to be interesting." Leon shifted his weight. "Any idea what's going to happen as you get further into the pregnancy?"

"It's wait and see with what his body handles." Riku flicked his bangs. "Obviously, no one is entirely sure how this is going to play out."

"I want to work for as long as I can." Cloud declared easily. "Riku and I don't really agree on the details of all that yet but we're playing it by ear with what the doctor says."

Nodding, Leon pursed his lips. "Just tell me anything that needs to be done. I'll start looking into an assistant and they can eventually fill in for you when you have to take leave."

"Just let Sora keep doing it." Riku shrugged. "He doesn't mind and complains he doesn't do any real work around here anyway. He already knows what's going on so we won't have to explain anything to him either."

Cloud's phone rang and he pulled it from his pocket. He quickly answered and Bobbi informed him that everything was still within proper range. He thanked her and ended the call, tossing his phone on the end table after.

Riku reached over and toyed with the short hair on the back of Cloud's head. "Everything normal?"

"Yeah." Blue eyes slipped shut as Cloud enjoyed the feel of Riku's fingers in his hair. He really wanted some ice cream but he would not give into the craving in front of Zack and Leon.

The silver-haired Strife worried his lower lip and looked between Zack and Leon as he continued with Cloud's hair. "This probably goes without saying but we need you both to keep quiet about this for now. We're slowly telling everyone but we need to do this our way."

"Sure." Zack shrugged. "We kept Tifa's pregnancy quiet for weeks."

Leon nodded. "If you need help with anything, you know we're here."

"Yeah." Riku's fingers moved to Cloud's neck. "One of the only things we haven't had to worry about is the support of our family and friends. Sora and Sephiroth have been amazing."

"Oh, man!" Zack chuckled, standing up. "I didn't even think of Seph's reaction to becoming an uncle! I know Sora's gotta be excited!"

"I don't think he's the only one." Leon commented, eyeing his lover in amusement.

"Oh, heck no!" Zack spun on his heel. "This is gonna be awesome. I always wanted kids and now I'll have one by proxy. I'm gonna be the best damn uncle ever!"

Cloud opened his eyes. "My child is going to be spoiled as hell."

"Probably." Riku laughed. "She's at least going to be doted on by pretty much everyone."

Sighing in defeat, Cloud rubbed once at his belly and got up. "I'm getting some ice cream."

As he went to the kitchen, he heard Leon snicker. "And Cloud's going to end up spoiling her the worst."

Both Riku and Zack agreed with _'yep_'s.


	9. Chapter 9

Leon and Zack left about three hours after arriving. When Cloud returned with his bowl of ice cream, Zack was on the sofa with Riku looking through the folder containing all of the information about pregnancy and fetal development. Leon had joined them, standing near the sofa arm and reading over one of the papers.

As Cloud ate his desert, the three of them came up with a list of questions and concerns to ask Cameron about on Cloud's next visit. He had to admit, they had thought up some good ones that he really wanted to hear the answer to. Plus there were some potential problems he had not thought of.

After they left, Riku went to let the dogs out for the last time for the night. Cloud followed to the kitchen to rinse out his bowl and get some water to take his vitamin. He did not know why but he preferred taking the damn caplets before bed. When Riku let the dogs back in, the silvered one came over and rested his head on Cloud's shoulder.

"I feel relieved and terrified at the same time."

Cloud put his bowl in the drying rack. "Me, too. I'm glad we told them though."

"Yeah." Riku lightly kissed his ear. "And Leon thought of some really important concerns."

"We'll ask about them at the next appointment; which is… next week?"

"I think so." Riku paused. Worrying his lower lip, he cautiously asked, "Is all of this beginning to feel… real to you yet?"

Cloud shifted and Riku raised his head so that the shorter man could turn around. "It's felt real for a while now, Riku."

Aqua eyes cast downward as Riku considered what he really wanted to ask. He hoped that now they had told two of their closest friends, had discussed it with them, Cloud might feel more attached to the pregnancy. Maybe he would ever start truly talking to Riku about the baby. As of now, he still felt awkward saying anything about what he wanted for their child.

"I'm tired."

Riku nodded a bit in agreement. "Yeah, been a long day."

"Come on." Cloud took his hand and led him to the stairs. He knew Riku was unsettled again and wasn't certain about exactly what. He wanted to ask but did not know what to ask.

They entered their bedroom and Cloud turned down the sheets as Riku watched. "Cloud?"

Blue eyes locked onto Riku in mild concern.

Shaking his head, Riku went for the bathroom. "Never mind; let's just go to bed."

He disappeared and a moment later the water came on. Cloud remained still, listening as his husband got ready for bed. He did not know what was causing this sudden tension but he was deeply troubled by it. Things were supposed to be better now that they were telling their loved ones that they were going to have a baby.

Riku brushed his teeth more vigorously than normal. Something was really eating at him and he was not quite sure what exactly it was. He was glad that Cloud had decided it was time to go public about the baby, he truly was. It had been exciting to see Zack's reaction and Leon had been a welcome voice of reason, completely acknowledging the pregnancy and making plans to accommodate for it…

He paused in his brushing as it came to him what was bothering him. Among all of the talk about changes and things that were going to have to be done, there was never discussion about the baby itself. No one spoke of how it was going to affect their lives or the things that would need to be done for the baby's arrival. Their child was still just a thing, something to prepare for like one would a coming storm.

Rising out his mouth, Riku finished up and left the bathroom. Cloud was sitting on the bed and he glanced up as Riku re-entered the room. His lover appeared a little lost; Cloud had his fingers laced together before him and was slumped slightly forward. Riku only brushed his cheek as he passed him.

He then stripped down and got into bed; a moment later Cloud followed suit.

-0—0—

"Morning, guys." Zell greeted them as they approached the fruit stand. Sunday mornings were the best time to come pick out fruit because most of the town did not come out until later in the day to shop. The farmers would have their best selection out for the restaurant owners but did not raise their prices.

"Hey, Zell." Riku returned quietly, glancing over the fruits for sale. Cloud hung back a little, letting Riku handle the purchase. He knew very little about how to pick out fruit or vegetables; he wasn't even sure why he wanted to come with.

"Hey, how do these mangos look to you?" Zell asked with a frown. "They aren't the color I'm used to."

"They're a different type; these are going to be a little sweeter."

"Cool." Zell picked out a few of them. "Good thing I have you Islanders to help with this stuff. Those smoothies of Sora's sell better than almost anything else we got."

Riku nodded idly then looked behind him. Cloud was a little pale this morning but had wanted to come with. It was unusual but not unwelcomely so. Things had been tense between them for a few days now.

Zack and Leon had not shown any sign of knowing that Cloud was pregnant. Everything was exactly as it had been before they were told and Riku was of a mixed opinion on that. He supposed it was better for Cloud this way, however, and therefore did not say anything,

"See anything you want, Cloud?"

His husband ran his eyes over the selection. Food was again sounding horrible this morning. "Strawberries; maybe some kiwi and grapes."

"How about a pineapple?" Riku picked out a few kiwi. "I could grill some slices with the chicken tonight."

"Sure."

Zell glanced between them with concern. It was obvious that he sensed something was off between the couple. He did not ask what but both Riku and Cloud knew he wanted to.

"Well, howdy all." The three turned at Irvine's greeting. "How are we this fine morning?"

Cloud ignored whatever response Riku and Zell gave and rubbed at his forehead. He felt a fainting episode coming on and was determined to fight it back. He refused to pass out again in front of everyone. "Riku?"

The silvered man faced him and frowned deeply. He made the few steps closer and placed his hand on Cloud's arm. "What's wrong?"

"I'm going to go sit for a bit," Cloud stated in reply.

"Okay…" Riku worried his lower lip. Cloud looked weak and he did not want to leave him alone.

"You look like you're gonna fall over, Strife." Irvine noted. "Stomach still bothering you?"

"Something like that." The blond muttered. He really needed to sit down.

"Come on." The tall ex-SeeD threw an arm around Cloud's shoulders and began steering him away. "Riku can finish here and I'll take you to the coffee shop; get them to fix you up what Edea used to make us for belly trouble."

Riku silently thanked Irvine as he and Cloud walked away. Irvine would stay with Cloud until Riku joined them or he was certain Cloud was all right. It was likely Cloud was just having one of his swooning spells and would be okay again pretty quickly; he had not actually fainted since that first time.

"Is Cloud really alright?" Zell asked quietly, regaining Riku's attention. "While he has his good days, he still seems to have some pretty bad ones, too."

Riku smiled reassuringly but there was still worry in his eyes. "He's okay. There's just some lingering side-effects that should be going away soon."

"Good." The tattooed blond added a carton of blueberries to his basket. "Hopefully he'll be back to 100 percent in time for the next security tournament."

The next fighting series was to happen in three months. There was absolutely no way Cloud was going to be able to participate. Though, the mental image of Cloud wielding that enormous sword of his while nearly six months pregnant was hilarious. "We'll see."

"You'll see what, yo?"

Great, Reno. Riku had only seen the man in passing since the day at the healers. He did not want to risk a conversation with him in front of Zell; Zell would pick up that there was something he didn't know and would ask questions.

"Cloud entering the next tournament." Zell replied, paying for his fruit.

"Ah." Reno flicked his eyes at Riku. "Well, it would be better for most of us if he doesn't. Some of us might actually make it into the finals."

"Yeah." The martial artist snorted. "To get our butts kicked by either Sora or Sephiroth."

"True." Reno scooped up an apple. "Where is Cloud anyway?"

"With Irvine in the coffee shop." Riku answered neutrally.

"Well, guys, I'm out of here." Zell half-waved. "If Cloud's up to it, stop by later. I want you to try something for me."

"Sure." As Zell walked away, Riku tensed up. He did not want to be left alone with Reno; nothing against the Turk but he just wasn't up to dealing with him. He would quickly finish up here then go check on Cloud. Hopefully, Reno would not follow.

He selected a package of strawberries and moved to pay just as Reno softly asked, "How's Strife?"

From the corner of his eye, Riku saw Reno bite into the apple and indicate with his free hand that Riku was paying for it. "He's fine."

"You tell anyone else yet?"

Riku paid the farmer his munny and stepped away from the stand. Reno fell into place beside him and munched on his apple. Quietly, Riku informed him that Zack and Leon knew about Cloud.

"Well, that's a good sign." Reno chuckled. "You'll know he's really committed when he tells Tifa, yo. Now that's a conversation I wouldn't mind sitting in on."

Riku remained silent. He knew that Reno was correct; when Cloud finally told Tifa he was pregnant would be the proof that Cloud was completely committed to his pregnancy. Riku had not seen Tifa for several days and did not know if Cloud had either. He wondered how long it would be before Cloud did tell the woman was like a sister to him.

There was a small commotion at the coffee shop and Riku's stomach dropped. He broke away from Reno and nearly ran through the door, pushing past the few people hovering around it. He scanned the shop for Cloud and Irvine, his eyes settling on a gathering in the back corner. He could feel the color draining from his face.

Before he could plunge into the crowd, he heard his name called. He sighed in relief and immediately walked toward a table on the left. He wrapped his arms around Cloud's shoulders and kissed the top of his head, muttering a _thank the worlds_.

Cloud rubbed his husband's lower back. "I'm fine, Riku."

Reno had caught up by now and motioned with his chin at the grouping in the back. "What's going on there?"

"The lady that bakes the muffins and scones and stuff is selling paper bag pies." Irvine grinned. "Cloud and I got first pick of the apple ones. She said it was only right that the country boys had first dibs."

"Zack will be pissed." Cloud laughed lightly. "He once told me his mom made apple ones all the time."

"Pie in a bag, huh?" Reno looked skeptical.

"It's amazing."

"Guess I should check it out."

"Betty hurry." Irvine advised. "They're goin' fast."

Reno turned on his heel, in the process pausing to pat Cloud's shoulder. He winked at the spiky-haired man. "Good to see you so relaxed again, Spike."

He left them and Irvine lifted an eyebrow at the strange display. "Well, that was odd."

"It's Reno." The blond shrugged.

Riku ran his fingers through Cloud's soft hair. "You look a lot better."

"I feel better. The mix Irvine put together works really well."

"Squall should know how to make it, too." Irvine frowned. "Maybe. I don't know if that would be one of the things he remembers from when we were kids."

"Both he and Zell have been getting a lot of those memories back, especially these past-" Cloud winced a bit and brought his hand to his belly.

Riku felt panic rise within him. "What's wrong?"

The older man's face grew concerned for a moment. He wasn't sure what he just experienced but it was uncomfortable and unsettling. It was like a cramp just about where the baby was. A dull ache remained, similar to the kind when a muscle worked too hard.

"Cloud?"

"It's…just a cramp."

"You sure?" Riku didn't believe him and wanted to demand they go to the healers and have the baby checked out.

"Yeah." Cloud sounded certain and his hand slipped down a bit to where the baby was actually growing. "The muscle just cramped up."

Riku was not convinced. "Maybe we should get it checked-"

"I'm fine, Riku." Cloud snapped out. "I'll tell you if I think something's wrong."

Riku's jaw tensed. He did not want Cloud angry at him and was rather upset at his lover's reaction to his concern. He had every right to be worried; no one knew what was going to happen to Cloud's body as the weeks passed. Even a minor discomfort could be the start of a miscarriage or some other complication. Maybe it was paranoia but better safe than sorry.

"It's over now." Cloud removed his hand from his abdomen. He flicked his eyes up and smiled minutely. "We're okay, I promise."

Riku relaxed some but was still uneasy. He brushed the side of Cloud's face. "If it happens again…"

"I'll go see Cameron." Cloud took his hand and kissed his knuckles. "I won't take any chances."

There was a clearing of throat and both turned toward Irvine. They had temporarily forgotten where they were and more importantly who they were with. Irvine was obviously confused and worried about them; he did not say it but he didn't need to.

"Um…" Riku glanced at Cloud.

Cloud exhaled slowly and traced the edge of the table. "I suppose we might as well tell him. He's going to hear about it eventually."

Irvine's dark blue eyes grew deeply concerned. "Something's really wrong with you, ain't it? I knew you were hiding something."

"Not here." Riku cast his eyes about. "Let's go outside."

The other two nodded and stood. As they left the table, Reno suddenly reappeared and rejoined them. The redhead said nothing but he followed after them and it was clear that he knew they were about to tell Irvine the truth. Both Cloud and Riku were oddly glad he was there.

Outside, the small group walked the few feet away and located an isolated table at the edge of the patio. They took places around it and Reno pulled out a cigarette. At Riku's glare, he smirked. "I know; I ain't gonna light it, yo. I hung around Tifa enough to know the deal."

Irvine lifted a honey-colored eyebrow. "Suddenly you can't smoke around them?"

"Not around Cloud."

"Ya can't what around Cloud?"

The named blond dropped his head against the table. Well, the man had been the first in AVALANCHE to find out he was gay; might as well be the first for this, too. "Cid. Put out the cigarette and sit."

The engineer's face twisted up. "Why?"

"Because we need to tell you something and it might as well be now."

Reno snorted as Cid snuffed out his smoke and joined the group. "You may want to give him some tea and whiskey first, yo."

"I need some tea and whiskey," muttered Cloud. In a louder voice, he addressed Riku. "It's your turn to do this."

The younger half of the couple moistened his lips. He had not expected Cloud to have him do any of the telling. It seemed like some kind of therapy to allow Cloud to keep doing it but he supposed with these two at least, it did not matter which of them said it. Irvine and Cid would not care.

"I guess there's no other way to say this," said Riku. Cloud had both of his hands in his own lap and was studying the table. Apparently Riku was not getting any help from him… That was disturbing.

"Out with it, kid." Reno's tone was unusually gentle despite the demanding words. "Or I'll do it and rob you of your happy moment."

Riku looked at him and saw something he did not expect to see. Reno's eyes were not only encouraging but he seemed to be…happy; happy for them. It was strange and yet very reassuring. Riku found himself smiling in response.

Rather confidently, Riku returned his attention to Irvine and Cid. Beside him, Cloud watched the two's expressions closely as Riku finally spoke. "As crazy as I know this sounds, Cloud's pregnant and yes, with my baby."

Irvine blinked several times. He shook his head and the disbelief was evident in his expression. He gave himself a minute then asked the couple, "What the fuck do y'all do to each other?"

"We don't want the details." Reno declared easily.

Cid appeared to be deep in thought and Cloud was more interested in his reaction than Irvine's. The sharp-shooter and he were not really friends and he really did not care what he thought. Cid, however, was a long time friend and Cloud had a fairly tight bond with him. He had been able to tell things to the older man before anyone else on several occasions.

"Spike," Cid spoke slowly. "I seen a lot of fucked up shit in my time; been through a lot of fucked up shit, mostly due to you. This… this is a fucking new one."

"It's got nothing to do with Jenova or anything Hojo did."

"Ah assumed that, Cloud." Cid thumbed his nose. "This woulda happened a hellava lot sooner if it did."

"How in the name of all the GFs did you get knocked up?" Irvine leaned forward. "You get cursed or something?"

"Actually, he did." Riku took Cloud's hand under the table. The swordsman squeezed his fingers as Riku again explained how they found themselves in their situation.

When he finished, Cid snorted. "Damn, Strife, you sure the hell know how to attract insanity to ya."

"As cursed as he is blessed," murmured Reno, toying with his unlit cigarette.

"Ye knew about this, Turk?"

"I stumbled on the info." Tattooed eyes flicked toward Cloud. "He hasn't told Tifa yet."

Cid gave Cloud a stern look. "She's gonna be pissed if she finds out you didn't tell her first."

Cloud winced; yes, he was aware of that. Tifa was the one person he was most concerned with telling. The woman was little a sister to him and she was protective of Cloud to the point of being overbearing. If he had told her while he was still uncertain about what he wanted to do, she would have torn into him about it. She also was not afraid to voice her opinion, good or bad.

He and Reno were the godfathers of her two boys. While they were wonderful kids and he loved them dearly, as he had Tifa's daughter who had passed away a few years ago, he was still a little aloof with them. Would she call him on that fact? Would she advise him not to keep the baby? She claimed that he and Riku would be great parents but now that there was an actual baby involved…

"She told Leon and Zack about the twins before telling Cloud." Riku noted. "And with Artemis, she told everyone at once."

"Yeah, but you know how she gets when it comes to Cloud."

"I'm telling her next." Cloud informed them, glancing down at his abdomen. "I would have gone to her before the two of you but circumstances had us tell you first."

"So I'm guessing you want us to keep quiet on this." Irvine assumed.

Riku nodded. "For now. Obviously everyone will know eventually but… we're still processing all of this ourselves, you know? Cloud and I haven't entirely come to terms yet."

"But you're keeping it, right?" The tall gunman asked. "I reckon you wouldn't be sayin' nothing unless you were."

"We are," Cloud said the words softly.

Cid thumbed his nose again and shook his head. "Well, I'll support whatever you do. You two have made it through some insane shit so I know you can handle a baby. You'll be better parents than a lot of people I've known."

Tension drained out of Riku and he felt tears forming. He did not have words to express the relief and gratitude that swept through him as Cid's casual statement. This was the first time anything had been actually said about him and Cloud becoming parents. Cid was not focusing on just getting through the pregnancy; he was looking at the entire picture. It was a wonderful feeling to have the man's confidence.

Cloud also felt a bit of relief. He hadn't voice his fears but he seriously questioned his ability to be a parent. He tried not to think about it, focusing solely on the pregnancy itself, but the concern was still lurking in the back of his mind. Sephiroth had addressed it a bit with him but they did not really talk about it. It was more than a little heart-warming to have someone who knew him well say they believed he was capable of being a good parent.

Reno glanced at his phone and sighed heavily. "As much as I'm enjoying this conversation, we've got that security meeting in twenty minutes."

Huffing, Irvine fixed his hat. "Your brother needs a hobby, Riku. Something other than drills and strategy."

"He needs to get laid again, yo." Reno stood, as did Irvine and Cid.

"We better get out of here." Irvine tipped his hat at the Strife couple. "Y'all need anything, let me know."

"Yeah." Cloud managed a small smile. Now that Cid had pushed for it, Cloud knew that he shouldn't put off seeing Tifa any longer. Enough people now knew that the secret would be out sooner rather than later and it was absolutely imperative that Tifa heard about the pregnancy from him and no one else.

He missed the other's goodbyes and was briefly startled when Riku touched his shoulder. He gazed up at his husband and worried his lower lip. Riku's expression changed from concern to understanding and he leaned over to lightly kiss him.

When he pulled away, he brushed the side of Cloud's face with the back of his hand. "Should we call Tifa first or just head over?"

"We can call, but as soon as we do she'll know something us up and demand we come over anyway."

"Well," Riku got up and pulled Cloud with him. "Might as well call and give her the heads up on the way over."

Cloud removed his phone from his pocket and made the call he had been dreading since deciding to keep Riku's baby.


	10. Chapter 10

Yes, I know.

FYI, there are events mentioned here that are not addressed in my universe (I'm still debating if this is going to become part of it or not). These things will either come up in future stories/my words project, or will remain exclusive to this. I explain what you need to know here in the story. If you still have questions, feel free to ask.

Thanks for reading and please leave a review.

* * *

Denzel was rounding the stairs to go up when Cloud and Riku walked in. They had stopped at home briefly before going to Tifa's house to drop off the groceries. He paused on the third step and glanced over his shoulder at them. "Hey, guys. What's up?"

"We have to talk to Tifa." Cloud answered, frowning in thought at the teenager. Maybe they should tell Denzel along with Tifa. Even though the boy had lived with Tifa and Rude for years, Cloud still thought of him as a kind of surrogate son and he knew Denzel saw him as a father figure.

"I had a feeling that was you on the phone; Tifa only gets that look when it has something to do with you." Denzel turned to face the couple. For the past year he had been in Traverse Town, apprenticing under Reeve, and had only returned a few weeks ago. "Something up?"

"Yeah," Cloud said softly. "You doing anything?"

"Uh, I was gonna shower but it can wait if you want me to stick around."

Cloud flicked his eyes toward Riku and the younger man minutely nodded. If they were going to tell Tifa they might as well get Denzel in, too. "Yeah."

The teenager's lips curved down a touch but he traipsed back down the stairs. "Tifa should still be in the den."

Riku and Cloud followed him to the back of the house. The trio entered the den, finding Tifa sitting on the sofa folding clothes. On the floor nearby, her infant son, Artemis, lay sleeping on a blanket. It was a sweet little domestic scene and Riku wondered if he or Cloud would ever be this at peace.

"I don't know if I should be more worried or relieved that Riku is with you." Tifa glanced over as she folded the small pair of jeans in her hands and set them on the pile of toddler clothes. "Did you ask Denzel to stay?"

"Yeah." Cloud confirmed. "He needs to hear this, too."

"Okay, now I'm worried." Tifa stopped her task as Denzel dropped on the floor near his surrogate brother. "Even if it's good news."

"It _is_ good news." Riku enforced. Afterwards, he chuckled almost nervously. "It's also really messed up and completely unbelievable."

"Sounds like most of this family's lives." Denzel grinned.

"This may top all of that."

Tifa turned to fully face the Strife couple. Her mahogany eyes were concerned and she sat straight up with her hands on her knees. "What's going on, Cloud?"

Taking a short breath, Cloud considered his approach. Tifa always got more upset with him when he withheld information and it was likely she'd jump on him if he started with a simple 'I'm pregnant'. "You know how I've been sick off and on for the past month or so."

Denzel snorted. "Reno made a crack the other day that you were knocked up. It was really funny."

Cloud paled a bit but otherwise did not react; Riku made a noise and shook his head. So that was how Reno had kept his mouth shut; he hadn't. He was making jokes about it that no one took seriously. Riku wasn't sure if that was going to be good for them later or not.

Tifa did not take her attention away from Cloud. "I noticed that you were still going to the healers a lot. Aerith said you would be fine though; it was a passing thing you were getting treated for."

"I don't know how passing it's going to be yet…" Cloud's voice lowered. "Hades put a curse on me. I really hope its reversible but…"

"He _what_?" Tifa started, nearly standing. "What kind of curse?"

Cloud glanced down, an embarrassed flush coming to his fair skin. "He…reversed my physiological gender."

Denzel gaped. "Are you serious? So like, you have girl parts now?"

"No." Cloud shot back rather harshly. "I'm still physically completely a man."

"Well, almost completely." Riku muttered, earning a glare from his husband.

"I don't understand." Tifa canted her head, long bangs falling to the side. "Your physiology? Are you saying you have a woman's body chemistry instead of a man's?"

"And eggs instead of sperm." Riku added making sure she got the full picture.

"Damn." Denzel softly cursed. "That sucks, Cloud. Now you really can PMS."

Tifa was silent as she processed this information and Cloud watched her carefully, waiting. He had no idea how to answer many of the questions he knew she would have. To top that off, they had not even gotten to the most important part.

The woman studied Cloud for a beat longer. "Is that what's been making you sick?"

"Kind of." Cloud replied.

"Can it be reversed?" Denzel inquired. "If it's a spell it can be undone, right?"

"Probably; Merlin is working on that right now."

Tifa shook her head. "This is a really random way to curse someone, not to mention form of revenge. I suppose to a male female hormones are one of the worst things out there and having to deal with them would be an experience no man would want but…"

"Hades…" Cloud spoke slowly. "Had a different goal in mind."

"Like what?"

The blond looked to Riku. Shifting his weight, Riku explained. "He put Cloud under a modified god-pregnancy spell. He figured that if Cloud got pregnant, it was the worst thing he could do to him."

Tifa worried her lower lip and nodded. "I can see that. Cloud would freak out if he was going to be responsible for a child like that, especially one created under extreme circumstances. He wouldn't handle it well at all."

"But," Denzel scrunched his face. "If Cloud just suddenly came up pregnant, wouldn't he just be able to abort it? I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm not really for that but if I became magically pregnant I'd probably end it right away."

"I would have." Cloud confirmed both of their statements. "And Hades knew that. What he did was make it so I _could_ become pregnant."

"He assumed like many others that I do the taking." Riku furthered. "So not only could Hades throw Cloud with an impossible pregnancy, it would be my baby so he couldn't just abort it."

"That's diabolical." Denzel leaned back, resting his weight behind him on his hands. "I always thought that Hades was kind of an idiot but that's a clever plan."

"It is." Tifa agreed. "Thankfully he was wrong about the sex roles. So long as you don't switch things up, there's no chance of an unwanted pregnancy."

Both Cloud and Riku stiffened. They cast brief looks at one another, each wondering how they were going to tell her that there was a pregnancy. It did not sound like Tifa thought that Cloud could handle that scenario and Riku knew that Cloud valued her opinion deeply.

"How did you find out about all of this anyway?" Tifa inquired, glancing at her infant son on the floor as he stirred a bit.

In a calm voice that surprised Riku, Cloud answered. "I started having morning sickness about a month after Riku and I decided to switch places."

Tifa completely froze and her expression went blank.

Denzel, on the other hand, sputtered and sat up straight. "Are you fucking serious?"

"Language, Denzel." Tifa chastised automatically.

Riku's hand gripped Cloud's and he felt no relief from the contact. He was honestly afraid of what Tifa's next words to him would be. Just by her earlier remarks, she obviously did not think he could handle this. That upset him a great deal; she had gone on for years about thinking he and Riku would make great parents. Now that the real possibility had appeared, she was changing her mind.

Riku was also afraid but more so of how Cloud would react to his childhood friend's words. Would he change his mind about keeping the baby if Tifa didn't think he could deal with? Riku knew that Cloud often took her advice more seriously than anyone else's; she had always supported him and was first to make him face things he did not want. What if she decided that this wasn't what Cloud wanted?

What if she was right?

The dark-haired woman swallowed thickly. The shock was finally making its way into her expression. "You're… pregnant?"

"Yes." Cloud confirmed quietly. "Do you think I would come and tell you about the curse if there _wasn't_ going to be a lasting effect from it?"

"No, I suppose not." She agreed softly. She faced the Strife couple and very softly asked, "You decided to keep it?"

Cloud simply nodded.

"Wow…"

"So, hold on." Denzel frowned. "Did you get a uterus or something? I mean, where's the baby growing?"

Cloud released Riku's hand and lifted his shirt. So that Denzel and Tifa could really see it, he inhaled so that the rest of his stomach became sucked in. He then gently caressed the raised portion of his abdomen.

"Oh, wow." Denzel got on his knees and crawled closer. He stopped before Cloud and studied the area, not trying to touch it. "It attached to the abdominal wall?"

"Yeah." Riku watched the teen and was glad to see that he was more curious than anything. He had hoped that Denzel would take no serious issue with the pregnancy. "We got lucky with the placement. The baby will have plenty of room to grow."

"Too weird."

On the floor, Artemis moved his head and opened his eyes. He fussed a bit, making light, distressed noises. The infant appeared about ready to cry.

"Denzel, could you go change him?" Tifa asked, not moving from her spot on the sofa.

Riku could tell by Denzel's expression he knew he was being dismissed. Deciding that it would be best at this point to just let Tifa have it out with Cloud and hoping that it would not change Cloud's decision, Riku walked over to the baby. He knelt and scooped Artemis up, smiling lightly at him. "Come on, Denz. You can show me where everything is."

Denzel was well aware that Riku already knew where to find the diaper supplies in the nursery, Riku had been here visiting several times, but he laughed and got up. "Yeah. Better start getting your practice in, Dad."

Cloud observed Riku picking up and settling Artemis against him to take upstairs. He had always thought Riku was very natural with babies and small children and right now it was hitting him harder than ever before. It had to be the damn hormones.

When Riku passed him, Cloud automatically reached and brushed his hand along his lover's jaw and smiled. Riku returned it, leaning over to kiss the corner of Cloud's mouth. Then Artemis cried and Riku took him away with Denzel following.

Once he heard them on the stairs, he turned his face down. "Tifa…"

"Are you sure about this, Cloud? I know that the two of you talked about kids when I had the twins but you decided against them. While I know Riku was a little disappointed about it, I haven't heard a word from you about it. In fact, you seemed rather relieved by the decision."

"That was a few years ago." Cloud retorted. "We weren't ready then."

"And suddenly you are now?" Tifa asked tersely. "What changed? You got pregnant? That doesn't mean you're ready, Cloud. There are other options."

"No, there aren't." Cloud turned on her. "I hate how this happened. If I had been given the choice it wouldn't have but it did. When I was told… my first instinct was to have the abortion and pretend it never happened. I even told Riku and the doctors that but… it was a reflex. I shut down like I always do. Even after it was discovered that Riku was the baby's father, I didn't care."

Taking a breath, the blond man walked the few steps to the blanket on the floor. "It killed Riku that I could even consider killing our child. I won't lie, Tifa. I'm not keeping the baby for myself but I'm not keeping it only because of Riku either."

"Then why are you?" Tifa inquired softly.

Cloud knelt down and picked up a small stuffed chocobo. He examined it for a time before looking to his oldest friend. "I'm doing it because I want to experience this with Riku. I see how much it means to him and I want to give it to him."

They fell silent. Cloud could see that Tifa was not satisfied with his answer and found himself not caring. He had made his decision and would not be swayed from it. Even if he had reservations, he would deal with them and be the parent he would need to be. He would give Riku the family he wanted.

Tifa's voice was quiet. "I don't agree with this, Cloud."

"You don't have to."

"I know." She sighed. "I just… Make sure this is really what you want. It's one thing to sacrifice yourself for someone's happiness but it's the baby who will suffer for it this time if you're wrong. I know you don't want that."

"I already thought about that." Cloud straightened up. "Sephiroth has been forcing me to really think about all of this."

"What does he think you should do?"

"He hasn't said either way. He's made it clear that this is between me and Riku and we need to do what we think is best for us and our baby." The blond idly touched his abdomen. "All I want is for my family to be happy."

He felt Tifa's eyes on him and he dreaded her next question. He knew what she was going to ask and he did not have an answer for her. It was something that had been hovering in the back of his mind for weeks now and he was avoiding worrying about.

"What happens if Riku loses control again?"

-0—0—

"That's a much happier baby." Riku fastened the clean cloth diaper around Artemis. The boy fussed happily at him and Riku smiled easily at him.

"He's a really happy baby." Denzel noted, watching the older male scoop up the infant. "I've only known the little guy for the few weeks since coming back from Travers Town but he's just so full of joy. He's more energetic than Ayden was as a baby."

"Ilea was the energetic twin." Riku agreed, shifting Artemis in his arms. The child cooed and gave a toothless grin. Artemis favored Tifa in appearance, unlike his older brother who looked more like Rude.

Riku wondered which of them his and Cloud's child would take after. Would she have Cloud's blond hair? Or maybe his silver but spiky like Cloud's. He really hoped she ended up with Cloud's blue eyes. Then again, maybe she would get one of their relatives' features. It would be odd if people ended up mistaking her for Sephiroth's child. Perhaps she'd look like Cloud's mom-

"Riku?"

The silvered man blinked and focused on Denzel who was smirking at him. He knew that Denzel understood exactly what he was doing and made a face at him. "Just wait till you have kids. You'll get caught up wondering the same things."

"Oh, I'm sure" The nineteen-year-old folded his arms. "I think all parents no matter who they are goes through the same process."

"Well, I don't know about that." Riku frowned. "People who don't want kids but have them any way wouldn't."

"They aren't parents then. What does Sephiroth call your father? Your paternal genetic donor?"

"Yeah."

"So there you go." Denzel leaned against the short dresser by the door. "My mom once told me that before I was born, she had this picture of what I would look like. When I finally was born, I didn't look anything like she imagined. I asked her if that upset her and she laughed then said no because I was real perfection, not her imagined."

Riku really liked that idea. That was how all parents should view their children; it was fine to have wants and hopes for one's child bit those should never overshadow the reality of what is. One of the issues he was unable to reconcile with his own mother was that she never saw him as an individual and acknowledge his accomplishments' all she saw was his shortcomings and failure to become the ideal she had created that he should be.

"Hey, Riku?"

Aqua eyes flitted to the side to check that Artemis was still content. "What?"

"You scared? 'Bout becoming a dad, I mean."

Riku worried his lower lip and watched Artemis giggle and bury his face into Riku's shoulder. "Yeah, I am. There's… so much that can happen, both to me and Cloud or because of us. Our child could suffer horribly due to us and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened. At the same time, we could give her an absolutely amazing life. Everything is so uncertain and that's frightening but I want to take that chance."

Denzel nodded. "I still see Cloud as my dad, even though he's always been more of an absentee father than anything, but he was always there when I needed him. We always knew that he would give us everything we needed and he supported us to the best of his ability. I know that he's going to be a great dad."

Riku smiled, feeling warmth spread through him. "I know he will. I have no doubts about that."

-0—0—

When Riku and Denzel returned to the den with Artemis, it was easily apparent that an intense discuss had been had between Cloud and Tifa. Cloud smiled at Riku as he came in with the infant but it was a constructed one that Riku saw through immediately. Rather than draw attention to it, Riku smiled back and handed off Artemis to his husband.

"Hey, Artemis." The blond spoke softly. His blue eyes brightened and the smile became more natural as he held his godson. "Riku take good care of you?"

The tanned boy giggled and reached to grab a spike of his hair. He didn't pull it though, just held on and continued giggling. The child squirmed happily against Cloud.

Riku glanced at Tifa, who was looking at him. There was worry in her eyes but also an odd acceptance that Riku was uncertain about. He got the impression that she was concerned about him and trying not to be. He had no guesses as to why. He knew that she hadn't gotten Cloud to change his mind.

Tifa stood. "Do you two want to stay for dinner? Rude and Ayden should be coming back soon from Ayden's check-up."

"Thank, but no." Cloud answered for them. He made the few steps toward the woman and returned her younger son to her. He gave no excuses or reason for the refusal but Tifa didn't ask.

Tifa nodded as she took Artemis. There was a beat of awkward silence before she leaned in and kissed Cloud's cheek. The edges of her mouth curled up in a genuine smile. "If you need anything or just wanna bitch for a bit, I'm here. I know how some of those side-effects can get."

Cloud snorted in amusement. "The cravings are already driving me crazy."

"I still can't eat anything with caramel. I am completely burned out on it."

"Only when you're pregnant now, huh?"

"Pretty much."

Denzel nudged Riku. "Wait till he's all huge and doesn't want to get up himself when he gets those cravings. Rude said those three a.m. searches for random things were the worst part."

"It wasn't nearly as bad with this one as it had been with the twins." Tifa scowled, bouncing Artemis. "But I gained almost as much weight. Thankfully I lost it all after."

Cloud pressed a hand to his belly. "I'm really hoping to avoid that."

Denzel laughed. "I promise not to laugh when you're waddling down the street in baggy clothes and complaining about your swollen ankles, Cloud."

The man glared at him. "Thanks, Denzel."

-0—0—

Riku and Cloud walked quietly back home, the older man holding onto the younger's hand. While he seemed lost in thought, there was nothing brooding or anxious about it. It was almost like he was musing to himself and Riku was reluctant to interrupt it. It wasn't very often Could got this way.

When they got home, Cloud took the lead into the kitchen. He let the dogs outside and came back from the door to watch Riku search the fridge for something to make for dinner. "Riku."

"Yeah?" The silvered man pursed his lips, debating steak and potatoes or ravioli.

Cloud considered how he wanted to word his question. Deciding there really was not a good way to do it, he simply asked. "Does Jenova bother you anymore?"

Riku paused in his consideration. That was a random question and he was uneasy about why Cloud asked it. A year ago, Riku had completely lost control of himself, going into a psychotic state that Cloud, Sephiroth and Sora had barely pulled him out of. After it, he had gone through an intensive four-month psychiatric rehabilitation. Since then, he had felt more stable than he ever had in his life and while Jenova and the darkness were still there, he was never troubled by them. He had learned to truly accept and integrate them into his being.

He stood and looked at Cloud, noting the casual attitude his husband had despite the rather seriousness of the question. "No, she doesn't. She's there but she has no power anymore. Her cells are simply a part of me."

Cloud nodded slowly. "That was Tifa's main concern, if I could handle things if you lost control again."

Riku swallowed thickly. That was something he had never considered. What would happen if he did have a relapse? Or what if Cloud started having issues with his own darkness? They both had monsters within them, sleeping now, but the possibility for them awakening was always there. Why hadn't he thought of that before?

"I told her that it wasn't an issue. I know my Riku and he'd never do anything to hurt me or our child."

Riku took a moment to process the words and felt a smile pull at his lips. He closed the fridge and walked over to his love, wrapping his arms around Cloud's neck. Burying his face into his shoulder, Riku whispered. "Never again."

Cloud rubbed at his back. "I know."

"So… you aren't worried?"

"No." Cloud pushed him away enough to look into his eyes. "This child's only been in existence for a few months, only known of for a few weeks, and you're completely devoted to it. I know that no matter what, you'll make sure the baby is safe."

The younger one bit his lower lip. "You won't let anything happen either."

Cloud smiled. "Of course not."

Something about the conversation was nagging at Riku but he didn't want to think about it. They had been through enough today and it was time to relax. Riku kissed Cloud lightly and broke away from their embrace. He let the dogs back in and asked, "Steak or ravioli?"

"Ravioli is faster and I'm starving." The blond swordsman was rummaging through the fruit bowl on the counter, eventually producing a pear and biting into it.

"Got it." Riku pulled the package out, set in on the counter and set water to boil. "Anything with it?"

"If it's meat ravioli, I want tomato sauce."

"It's cheese." Riku glanced over his shoulder. "Herb mix and olive oil?"

"Yeah," Cloud sat at the table. He watched Riku again as he prepared dinner, yawning. "Long day."

"Yep." Riku flicked his silver hair. "But we got the important people out of the way. Denzel seems really excited."

"He does. Marlene will probably be at our door later tonight. Word will spread fast now."

"Indeed it will." Sephiroth commented as he entered the kitchen area. "Especially with Irvine knowing. You are aware that he's already trying to talk to Leon and Zack about your pregnancy?"

"Not surprised." Cloud ate some more pear. "We told Tifa, so as of now I don't really care who knows and who doesn't."

"Good." Sephiroth glanced over his brother's shoulder. "Because I can guarantee that within the next forty-eight hours, the whole city will know."

"Saves me the trouble of doing it myself."

"Aw, you don't like the looks of shock and confusion?" Riku snickered.

"Can't say that I do, Riku. In fact, I'm just going to direct all questions to you."

"Be easier on you both to simply create a flyer and posting in the marketplace." Sephiroth added a touch of spice to the oil mixture Riku was making.

"We are not putting up a flyer explaining how I got knocked up."

"Then be prepared to do a lot of explaining."

Cloud sighed and rubbed at his stomach. "The things I'm going to have to go through for you."

Both Riku and Sephiroth laughed.


	11. Chapter 11

Hey, I'm not dead. I'm steadily plugging away at stories when I can. Finally finished this chapter, so it'll be on to the next story. There's a lot I need to work on.

So, reminder: I only own the story, everything else to it's respective creators.

* * *

Exactly as predicted, nearly everyone in town knew of Cloud's 'delicate condition' within two days of their announcements to Cid, Irvine, Tifa, and Denzel. Already, Cloud and Riku were getting stopped randomly to answer questions and dispel the insane rumors that were beginning to form. Overall, the town was more morbidly curious than anything.

Their friends' reactions had been varied. Yuffie would not shut up with the questions and eventually the couple pushed her off on Aerith. Zell was disturbed by the whole concept and didn't talk about it. Marlene was ecstatic about having a 'sister' or 'brother' and was already making plans to throw Cloud a baby shower. Riku had called Kairi, who had told everyone on Destiny Islands, and she and Selphie were promising daily calls for updates.

Whenever Cloud and Riku were faced with someone, either to answer questions or accept congratulatory remark, Cloud would let Riku do most of the talking. Obviously there were times he was alone and had to do it himself but he preferred to let Riku have the attention. The younger man was infinitely more excited about becoming a father than Cloud was.

At the next healers' visit, Bobbie had smiled as she carefully drew Cloud's blood, and he didn't flinch. He supposed it was only a matter of time before he was all right with the action with how often he was having it done. Despite this, he really hoped that eventually the frequent draws would become unnecessary. He scheduled the next actual check up before leaving.

He hadn't seen Tifa since the visit at her house, and he wasn't sure what the cause for that was. He tried not to stress it much for he had it set in his mind that even if she never could accept the pregnancy, he had made the right decision and once the baby was born, she would lighten up. Tifa would never take her feelings out on a child.

Cloud was at eleven weeks now and still felt disbelief. Now that the morning sickness had for the most part passed, he felt completely normal. If it weren't for the blood draws and the vitamins every morning, he could very easily tell himself that he wasn't pregnant, that he wasn't the victim of a strange spell and convoluted plan for revenge by a crazy god. There were mornings when he wanted to forget all of that.

But Riku wouldn't allow that. The younger man was excited for their baby, already talking nurseries and designs. While Cloud smiled at his husband's enthusiasm, it did nothing to make him feel more connected to the child inside of him. It was always Riku's baby when Cloud talked about it, never his, or even theirs. He knew that this was likely a serious problem that he was going to need to address, but didn't make any effort toward doing so.

"Hey, Cloud." Sora greeted as the blond returned to work. Sora had been at the warehouse everyday for a week now, learning what he could to eventually take over Cloud's job. "How was the healers?"

"Same as always," Cloud muttered softly, walking across the large space to the desk that Sora was sitting at. "Did you find out about the shipment?"

"Yeah, there was an issue with the manifest and they were delayed three hours. They'll be here in about an hour."

"Good." Cloud nodded. Sora was doing a really good job, and fulfilling every task given him quickly. Looking over the order documents, Cloud was pleased to see everything in order. All that was left was to wait for the things to arrive. "You're doing good, Sora."

The young man beamed. "It's kinda fun, actually. Harder work than I thought though… I'm sorry for ever thinking you had an easy job."

Cloud shrugged dismissively. "It's a common thought. Did you call the others?"

"Yep! They'll be here by the time the gummi arrives."

The blond nodded again, rubbing at his chest and suddenly feeling uncomfortable. It felt like he had heartburn, but he didn't normally get heartburn and hadn't eaten anything today that could even remotely cause that. Annoyed, he turned back away from the desk. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

Scowling, Cloud left the warehouse and entered the busy street of the shipping center. He was going to have to go back into town to get something to help the heartburn, and that was just…annoying. He was barely into this damn pregnancy and it was already a huge inconvenience.

Upon entering the marketplace, he spotted Aerith and Marlene working on one of the flower beds that lined various sections of the street. Not up to a conversation with either of them, he quietly passed them by and continued on to the small convenience store for a bottle of milk, hoping it was enough to counter the heartburn.

When he turned back to return to the warehouse, Aerith was looking at him. She smiled at him with a touch of concern and he inwardly groaned. There was no way he was getting out of a conversation with her now and she'd likely want to know all about his current discomfort. Deciding to just get it over with, he crossed over to the females.

Marlene looked up at his approach and grinned. "Hi, Cloud!"

He nodded back, uncapping the milk to take a quick drink.

Aerith tilted her head slightly. "Heartburn?"

"Yeah," he admitted quietly. "Just started today."

"I can give you some herbs for that after work. I wouldn't be surprised if you have it through the rest of the pregnancy."

"Neither would I," he muttered darkly, taking another sip of milk. So far, all of the annoying side-effects of pregnancy had effected him more strongly than usual and earlier than normal; probably because he was a man. "Thanks."

Marlene brushed some dirt from her hands, beaming. "Just remember all of the discomfort will be worth it in the end. I can't wait to have my own kids."

"Hopefully," he returned softly. Annoyance at his condition was still stirring within him and he had the fleeting thought of why he was putting himself through this. A voice that sounded disturbingly like Sora answered _cause you want you and Riku's baby, duh._ Right.

"If that's the only real complaint you have, you're doing pretty good." Marlene noted, brushing her hands together.

"It's the only one I'm currently vocal about," Cloud said dryly."It will change weekly."

"Probably daily." Aerith chuckled.

Taking another sip of milk, Cloud didn't respond to the statement. "I have to get back."

"Sure." The older female nodded. "I'll check in with you later and bring you those herbs."

"Thanks," he murmured, face turned down. "I appreciate your help with all this mess."

Aerith touched his arm. "Not a mess, Cloud. A baby."

"Yeah." Cloud broke away from the females, intent on heading back to the warehouse. He ended up taking the long way, following a twisted path through alleys and between buildings. No one ever traversed these pathways, giving him some measure of privacy.

When he finally made it back, Sora was siting in his desk chair, spinning around while tossing nuts in his mouth. Irritated, Cloud rounded his desk. "Out."

"Where'd you go?" Sora stopped turning and hopped out of the chair.

"Why does it matter?" He returned, taking the vacated seat. "Any changes?"

"Uh, nope." Sora eyed him. "You feeling okay?"

"Go see who's here and have them go ahead and start prepping. Maybe we can get things sorted as we unload and save some time."

"Yeah, sure." Sora left quickly, glancing over his shoulder as he did.

Cloud sighed, leaning back. The heartburn was still there but tolerable, and he wanted nothing more than to go home and sleep. He didn't know if that was due ti his condition or his suddenly very anti-social mood. Maybe he could stay in his office and let Sora handle shipment. The boy had taken well to the job so far, and Cloud would be here if there was a problem. This wasn't even a particularly large one.

But Cloud wanted to work. It had been important that he do so for as long as he could. No, until the day he was physically unable, he would do his job. There was already too much he no longer had control of due to this parasite, he wasn't giving up what little he still had. He stood back up, cracking his neck. There was work to be done, and avoiding people was not going to get it done.

-0-0-

Cloud bypassed the rest of the house by going in the back door to head straight to his study. Sealing himself in, he sat at his desk, slouched back and stared at the little picture of himself and Riku... Reaching over, he turned it away. That was going to change, and he didn't need away, and he didn't need the visible reminder.

It was nearly ten minutes before Riku knocked on the door. "Cloud?"

"Door's open."

Cracking it open slowly, Riku appeared by sticking his head through the space and after some hesitation his body followed. "I thought I heard you come home."

"Yeah."

"How was your day?" Riku reached to touch his hair but Cloud subtly shifted out of the path of his hand.

"Uneventful. Sora's gotten really good with everything."

"Yeah? Riku moved to lean on the corner of the desk. "Going to be able to trust him when you go on leave?"

"Sure."

"Good."

"Yeah." Cloud really wasn't up to talking to Riku, or anyone for that matter. "How much milk to we have?"

"Um...maybe half a gallon? I'm not sure... Why?" Cloud didn't care much for milk.

"Been having heartburn. That's the only thing that helps." Take the hint...

"Ah. I can run out and get more."

"Probably a good idea."

"Sure." Riku moved away from the desk. Walking for the door, he paused before it. "You know, next time, if you want to be alone just say so."

"..."

Riku sighed and left the room. He wasn't stupid, and he wasn't blind. Cloud had withdrawn into himself. Riku had no way of changing that, either. Cloud needed space so he would give it for now. He didn't know what else to do.

-0-0-

The heartburn was worse at night, keeping Cloud awake long after Riku was soundly sleeping. A week had passed since it began and it was becoming something he would need to address at the check-up in two days. Milk no longer did anything for it, but sitting upright kept him it from rising into the back of his throat and making him want to vomit. A spiteful thought entered his mind that he should wake Riku up to share his misery.

Cloud slipped free of the covers, deciding if he was going to be up, he might as well be doing something. Maybe it would take his mind off of things. At the least, it could distract him from the heartburn. In near silence, he left the bedroom and descended the stairs.

They had a decent sized work shed on the back of the property since a garage wouldn't fit properly on the long lot. Already the neighbors were too close for Riku. To Cloud, ti was the same as being home where the houses barely had space enough to walk between them.

The shed was where Fenrir was kept- there was just enough room for her and a very narrow table to store tools and parts, not only for her upkeep but basic home repairs. Cloud's beloved motorcycle had been badly neglected for some time ow, first due to being sick then the distraction of learning why he was ill.

Cloud ran a hand over her upon entering the shed. Though it was dark, his enhanced vision could see clearly enough to notice the fine layer of dust that was collecting. "I'm sorry, Fenrir. There's been things... Not that that is unusual."

Going for the bench, pulling the chain for the light overhead in the process, Cloud followed the action by pulling out a cloth and some fiberglass polish from a drawer. "I'll give you a more thorough treatment soon. Right now, I'm not feeling to well." People likely would think him crazy, but he found it much easier to talk to Fenrir as opposed to most people.

"Too much happening that I don't have control of." He greased up the cloth and began wiping down the motorcycle's body panels. "I thought those days were over, but here I am again. Something else has total say in what happens to me and my body."

Crickets chirped outside in the darkness. For several minutes Cloud worked, the occasional squeak from a spot that didn't get enough polish interrupting the muted sound of night. The hot, unpleasant taste rising from his esophagus remained, coating the back of his throat, but remaining focused was enough to avoid the nausea from earlier.

More time passed, until the sky began to lighten from the hues of midnight to the shades of dawn. Hints of pink broke up the deep blue as bids gradually started to awake, singing to indicate the change from night to day. Above this natural commotion, footsteps grew increasingly louder.

Cloud glanced away from his work for only a moment. "What are you doing up?"

"What are you doing out here?" Riku appeared angry. It was obvious that Cloud had been in here for hours. The air was damp and chilly... "You'll get sick in this."

"Already sick." If Riku had bothered to notice. "It's not that cold, either."

"You're sick?" His husband didn't appear ill... Tired, definitely. "Then why the heck are you out here making it worse? The last thing the baby needs-"

"I'm really tired of all your damn concern about the baby, Riku," snapped the blond man. "I ain't selfish enough to risk your kid's life. It's fine where it is and how it is. I'm not becoming a passive incubator for six more months!"

Riku was completely taken off-guard. "Whoa, wait... Where the hell did that idea come from?"

"I may be in a messed up state, but I don't have to act like it. I'm going to keep doing what I want until I physically can't."

"I...figured you would," said Riku in a cautious tone. "No one said you had to do differently."

"No, they didn't."

"Is that the impression you're getting, though?"

"...sometimes."

With a sigh, Riku shook his head. "Cloud, I don't want you to give up anything."

"I'm giving up everything."

"Do you really feel that way?"

"Usually." He admitted, though he did feel a bit of guilt with it. He knew Riku wasn't purposely doing anything of the kind. That didn't change how he felt.

"Cloud... Riku moved closer. "I'm sorry. There isn't anything I can do about that, is there?"

"I don't know." He wished he had something to tell him that would fix everything.

"I guess... not worrying so much about the baby would be a good start, huh?"

"Could be." Cloud stood up. He turned to the workbench to clean up. "I'll come in. This chill can't be healthy for it."

The damage would already be done. "I can make you some coffee." Riku offered, right hand coming up to hold his left elbow. "Unless you want to try to sleep."

"I'll end up napping later." He did that fairly frequently now. "But some coffee would be nice." He wouldn't say it, but his hands were a bit cold.

"Sure."

Cloud faced Riku, head turned down. "I'm sorry for worrying you."

The silver-haired man touched his chilled cheek. "Please, try to remember it's not just the baby I'm concerned about. I don't want anything to happen to you."

"I know." On a conscious level. "The damn hormones are still messing with me."

Riku knew that was an excuse. "Hopefully, everything will settle soon."

"Yeah."

"Come on. Let's warm up and find something fun to do together today."

-0-0-

"Cloud!" It wasn't a shout, but it was raised, intended to get the man to wake up. Riku re-entered their bedroom and crossed over to the bed. Voice quieting, Riku reached for Cloud's shoulder and shook him. "We're supposed to be at the doctor in twenty minutes."

Reluctantly, Cloud opened his eyes. He was so damn tired, had been all week. However, it had been stressed that the fifteen-week check up was one of the important ones. Grumbling, he untangled himself from the sheets and sat up, feet hanging off the edge. Absently, he rubbed at his stomach as he rolled his shoulders.

The bump where the baby grew had increased in size so that it was visible to the eye when he went shirtless. Clothing still concealed it, however, which was fine by him. He dreaded the day he wouldn't be able to hide it.

Riku chuckled, affectionately threading his fingers through Cloud's blond spikes. "You can sleep the rest of the day away when we get done."

It was a nice notion. "I have to go in this afternoon. Sora doesn't know how to do the monthly audit."

"You need to make sure he learns that." Riku withdrew his hand. "You'll be gone at least two months."

Well aware. "Yeah." Cloud stood, padding over to the closet to dress.

"Do you want anything to take with? There isn't enough time for breakfast unless it's to go."

"I'm not hungry." Cloud searched for underwear. Locating those, he slipped them on and reached for his pants.

Riku frowned. "You need to eat."

"I will when I'm hungry."

"..."

Cloud sighed. "You know that I'll be starving in a little while."

That was true and good enough for Riku. Nodding, he turned to exit. "I'll be waiting downstairs."

Cloud didn't reply and Riku left. Even he recognized he was rather crabby, but that was usual when he was made to wake up when he didn't want. Before all this, a few cups of coffee would break him of the mood. Maybe he could sneak one in on the way to work.

This lifted his mood considerably. Cloud had to work at fastening his pants -they were getting very snug- but once done, he quickly pulled on a T-shirt. After a rushed brushing of hair, he joined Riku downstairs.

Together, they walked to the healing center, and blessedly no one approached them. Cloud was tired of the stares and whispers, the open curiosity that met him anytime he came for his blood draw. The center staff was often as bad as the people on the street.

Upon arriving, Cloud signed in, managing a civil smile for the receptionist who had always been genuinely nice to him. He couldn't care less about the rest of them. They just grated his nerves and made him resist the urge to go on a murderous rampage of Sephiroth's level. That had to be the hormones.

He blamed those for a lot of things.

Riku had been quiet most of the walk, occasionally flicking his eyes over. Cloud was visibly tired and Riku was almost certain he wasn't sleeping well. He hoped Cloud would say something to the doctors about it, but doubted that would happen.

"I still hate this waiting room."

Riku briefly looked over. "Yeah. The paint is ugly and these chairs suck."

Not what he meant. "I guess comfort isn't their main concern."

"Well, they do try to get everyone through as fast as possible."

Ten minutes passed before Bobbi appeared in the doorway, smiling brightly. She was always so damn cheerful. It wasn't natural. Cloud stood just after Riku and followed him, ignoring the subtle stare of a woman near the door to the back.

"Good morning, Misters Strife. Time for the weekly weigh in and checkup." Bobbi took lead to a scale and small alcove, likely for the triage of patients.

Cloud stepped up on the scale without prompting, going so far as to slide the weights while she entered information to his electronic chart. He knew what he should weigh-

"Looks like you're up three more pounds." Bobbi noted, typing the numbers in. "So far, your weight gain has been good."

Riku grinned. "That's awesome."

Cloud backed off the scale, following Bobbi to an exam room. Inside, he climbed onto the exam table to wait out the rest of his vitals. He already wanted this visit over. Bobbi quickly finished taking his vital signs and ducked out with the words that the doctor wouldn't be long.

"They always say that." Riku leaned against the wall. "The concept of 'long' must be subjective."

"Yeah."

"...what's wrong, Cloud? And don't give me some vague answer or dismiss my question."

The blond sighed, fingers laced before him. "I'm having a bad day, Riku. That's all. I really didn't want to do this today, and everyone's been staring."

"I haven't seen anyone stare."

"Then you aren't paying attention."

Riku didn't care who stared, but he recognized that it was largely due to it not being him getting the attention. Cloud valued his privacy, but since the public was made aware of their situation, that privacy was virtually nonexistent. Moving from the wall, he stroked the column Cloud's neck comfortingly.

A knock on the door announced the arrival of at least one of the doctors. It was Chase who appeared, relieving Cloud. Of the two doctors, this one was the more practical, less annoyingly optimistic. This may have been due to Chase being a man and able to comprehend what all of this was doing psychologically to Cloud.

"Good morning. Let's try to get this over with." The male doctor greeted. To anyone else the statement would have been rude.

"Please," said Cloud gratefully. "I still feel mostly the same. I get heartburn on occasion, and my stomach is bloated enough that my clothes are getting tight."

"He's also tired most of the time," added Riku. He wanted to say more, but doubted Chase cared that Cloud was being an ass.

"That's expected." Chase did a basic exam before prompting Cloud to lay back. "Even women begin feeling fatigued at this stage. Increasing your protein will help."

"Tell my husband to buy more red meat." Cloud fell back, lifting his shirt as he did. That was what the doctor wanted to see anyway.

"You get plenty of red meat," retorted Riku with forced patience. "I'm not letting you get away with only eating deer and goat."

"I don't mind the beans." If he would add more salt.

"Well, you do need to keep up on the folic acid," interrupted the doctor, pressing his fingers along Cloud's abdomen. "But, increasing the meat a little wouldn't hurt. The key is balance. You're taking the vitamins, right?"

"Twice a day."

"Good." Taking his hands away, Chase took a step back. "Well, from what I can tell, everything feels right. The cavity the baby is attached at seems to be expanding to accommodate the growth. We're going to have to really watch it from now on."

"Great," muttered Cloud inaudibly. Thankfully, Riku didn't seem to hear it.

"I want to get another ultrasound, then you can have blood drawn and get out of here."

"Sounds great."

"I'll be back shortly."

Upon the doctor's departure, Riku moved close again. "You want to get something to eat after this, or just go home?"

"There's food at the house." Cloud lay at an angle, and when he looked down, he could see the raise in his skin. "I'm not really hungry, anyway."

Riku sighed. "Cloud... You can't avoid being seen."

"No, but I can limit it." Gently, he ran his fingers over the swell. "And I just don't want to be out. Can you accept that?"

"Yeah." Riku took a step back, face turned down.

Cloud exhaled, holding out his hand. "Come here, Riku. I don't mean to be short with you."

"I know, and I get that you're frustrated." Riku wanted to help with that, only he seemed to make it worse. It was with some surprise that he watched Cloud bring his hand to rest on his abdomen. "I don't know what I can do."

"There's nothing you really can do." The blond looked at how Riku's hand covered the swell almost entirely. "When the warehouse closes, come by and if I still feel good, we can go to that sandwich cart we like."

There was a little, secluded area close to it, rarely traversed by people. It was something. "I like that idea, if you're up to it. I think some fresh air, away from work would be good for you."

"Maybe," he agreed, eyes down at their hands. "For such a tiny thing, it's certainly making a mess of our lives."

"Yeah, I guess so. But, I hear that will be true when not so little."

Cloud made a noise. "Think she'll be worth it?"

"I know she will be."

Cloud decided he'd believe Riku on this one.


End file.
